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More than 500 teachers have been dismissed after being implicated with impregnating girls in primary schools, the Teachers Service Commission has said.

The revelation by the TSC chairman Ibrahim Hussein Wednesday also puts teachers on notice that besides losing their jobs they will also face criminal proceedings in courts after the Commission moved to involve the police.

Last year, Mr Hussein said 600 teachers had their names struck from the TSC register for impregnating their pupils.

But the chairman took issue with some parents, who have been a stumbling block in the disciplining of errant teachers by opting to settle such cases outside courts and leaving the randy teachers scot -free.

“The number of teachers who have been sacked and taken to court may appear to be small but this is an issue of concern that we would need the support of the parents and the community to bring it to an end.

“It is wrong for teachers who have been entrusted the care of the girls to turn against them and interfere with their education,” he said at the Sheikh Zayyed Welfare Centre in Mombasa during the Kenya Primary School head teachers’ association annual conference.

Mr Hussein, however, called on parents to ensure that the affected girls are allowed to go back to school after delivering so that their education is not curtailed.

He said it would be appropriate to take such girls to different schools after childbirth to avoid stigma.

At the same time, he said head teachers will be taken through special training on how to deal with such cases adding that the police have already started taking the lead in punishing the teachers.

“Nobody will be victimised but we call for cooperation in enforcing this so that the future of the girl child is secure,” he said.

Education minister Professor Sam Ongeri said despite a campaign on gender equity, some regions still discriminated girls in the provision of education.

He singled out North Eastern, Coast and Nyanza provinces where the number of girls in upper primary was very low compared to that of boys and called on head teachers to ensure there were equal opportunities for both boys and girls.
Source: Daily Nation.