NAIROBI, Kenya | August 25, 2026 — National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula has triggered fresh scrutiny of Kenya’s teacher recruitment system after claiming that some MPs receive Teachers Service Commission (TSC) appointment letters at State House and later demand money from desperate jobseekers.
Wetang’ula said some legislators allegedly charge as much as KSh400,000 for teaching opportunities, raising questions about whether political influence is interfering with a recruitment process constitutionally assigned to the TSC.
The Speaker did not name the MPs allegedly involved or identify specific teachers who may have paid money.
However, his account of how the letters allegedly reach politicians has turned the controversy into a much bigger question: who actually controls TSC jobs?
Wetang’ula’s State House claim
Wetang’ula said some MPs accompany him to State House, where President William Ruto allegedly gives them as many as 10 TSC appointment letters to distribute to teachers in their constituencies.
He then accused some legislators of selling the opportunities to desperate jobseekers.
The allegation remains unproven, however, and no specific MP has been publicly identified or charged over the claims.
What the Constitution says about TSC jobs
The controversy is significant because Article 237 of the Constitution gives the Teachers Service Commission responsibility for recruiting and employing registered teachers.
The Commission also assigns teachers to public schools, promotes and transfers them and exercises disciplinary control over the teaching service.
The TSC’s own recruitment procedures state that qualified teachers apply for advertised vacancies, shortlisted candidates attend interviews, county panels vet their documents and successful candidates are forwarded to TSC headquarters before appointment letters are issued.
That process raises a fundamental question about Wetang’ula’s account.
If MPs are receiving specific appointment letters from State House, at what stage were those candidates selected by the TSC?
TSC recruitment is supposed to be free
The TSC currently states that teacher recruitment is free of charge.
Its online recruitment system allows qualified teachers to apply for advertised vacancies and track their applications through to appointment. The Commission specifically warns applicants that no payment is required when applying for advertised positions.
That makes the alleged KSh400,000 payments particularly serious.
If applicants are genuinely being charged money for appointment letters, investigators would need to establish who is collecting the money, who promised the employment and whether TSC officials or political offices are involved.
Claims of political interference are not new
Wetang’ula’s remarks have revived allegations that politicians have been influencing teacher recruitment.
Other political leaders have previously claimed that MPs receive or distribute TSC employment opportunities to constituents.
Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna has also questioned whether political leaders are being given appointment letters for onward distribution, arguing that such a system could disadvantage graduates who have waited for years for employment.
