National Assembly Majority Leader Adan Duale has decried the low salaries paid to Madrasa teachers in Coast region.
Duale who is also the Garissa town MP said he was shocked to learn that the Islamic religious teachers earned a paltry salary of less than Sh2, 000 per month that could not sustain them.
“It is a pity to hear that the teachers are paid a pittance yet some parents with children who attend the Madrasa classes spend a lot of money on their secular education in private schools,” he said.
“What is Sh2, 000 compared to what you spend on the hefty tuition fees charged in academies?” he posed and emphasized the importance of Madrasa education in articulating Islamic cultural heritage and universal values.
Duale was speaking Sunday at Ng’omeni Primary School Grounds where he helped to raise Sh9million in aid of Imams in Matuga Sub-county, Kwale County.
He called for proper terms and conditions including fair remuneration for the tutors to motivate them saying in North Eastern where he hails from, they pay them a monthly stipend of Sh10, 000 at the minimum.
The legislator challenged Islamic leadership in Coast including politicians to voluntarily cater for the needs of the teachers as part of efforts aimed at improving the status and general welfare of Muslims communities in the region.
He also expressed concern over the drug menace in the coastal region and called for concerted efforts to eradicate the vice which is ruining many local youth.
He underscored the need for parents in the region to ensure their children embraced education as a first step towards preventing them from falling prey to drug and substance abuse.
Duale said the main agenda of Jubilee government is to unite all Kenyans for the country to attain faster and meaningful development noting that the ruling party has no room for divisive politics.
He also told off COTU Secretary General Francis Atwoli for saying Deputy President Dr. William Ruto would not succeed President Uhuru Kenyatta.
He said the trade unionist could not purport to be speaking for Jubilee yet he was not a member of the party.
Other leaders who addressed the gathering were MPs Suleiman Dori (Msambweni), Khatib Mwashetani (Lunga Lunga) and Julius Muthama (Lamu West) among others.
By Shaban Omar/James Muchai
