NAIROBI, Kenya – The Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) has finally secured official approval to amend its constitution, following months of scrutiny and objections from within and outside the union.
Acting Registrar of Trade Unions Ann Kanake, who initially withheld approval in January over procedural concerns, confirmed in a letter dated March 13, 2025, that her office was now satisfied with the union’s compliance.
The amendments have since been formally registered under Section 27 of the Labour Relations Act.
The amendment process faced significant hurdles, including concerns over public participation, changes to the retirement age of officials, increased nomination fees, and adjustments to delegate representation.
One major sticking point was the claim that KUPPET had not adequately involved members in the amendment process.
However, the union provided records showing it had notified branch leaders as early as March 2023 and submitted minutes from meetings in key counties, including Machakos, Siaya, Kakamega, Kiambu, and Mombasa.
After reviewing these documents, the Registrar ruled that public participation requirements had been met.
Another contentious change was the removal of the word “mandatory” from the retirement age clause, previously set at 65 years.
While some saw this as an attempt to allow officials to extend their tenure indefinitely, the Registrar deemed the revision insignificant, noting that the word “shall” still made the provision binding.
A sharp rise in nomination fees for union elections also triggered debate.
Under the revised structure, candidates for top national positions, including Secretary-General, National Chairman, and National Treasurer, will now pay Ksh 500,000 to vie, while other national positions require Ksh 300,000.
Branch-level nomination fees also saw an increase, with Executive Secretary candidates now required to pay Ksh 200,000 and other branch officials Ksh 50,000.
KUPPET defended the fee hikes, citing the rising costs of election logistics.
The Registrar backed the justification, ruling that the increase was reasonable and aimed at ensuring serious candidacy.
The amendments also altered how delegates are represented at the Annual Delegates Conference (ADC).
Previously, each county branch sent 10 delegates, but the revised system increases this to 14 for branches with up to 300 members, with an additional delegate for every 100 members beyond this threshold.
While some feared the change could disadvantage smaller branches, the Registrar upheld it as a fairer, more democratic approach.
Additionally, there were claims that the final vote on the amendments had not been conducted by secret ballot, as required by KUPPET’s constitution.
However, after reviewing ballot records, the Registrar confirmed that the required two-thirds majority had been achieved through due process.
The review process also uncovered irregularities in some of the objections submitted against the amendments.
According to the Registrar, some objections were received as early as December 21, 2024—before the amendments had even been officially submitted.
“This smelt of an orchestrated scheme that might have been prying on innocent teachers and manipulating them into forwarding objections without fully understanding the contents,” Kanake noted.
Emphasizing that union constitutions are governed by members’ discretion under Section 8 of the Labour Relations Act, Kanake concluded that all legal and procedural requirements had been met.
“With all objections considered and due process followed, this office has determined that KUPPET’s constitutional amendments were carried out lawfully and procedurally. We have, therefore, proceeded to register the said amendments,” Kanake stated.
