Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers Secretary-General Akelo Misori on Wednesday demanded for teachers in areas prone to terror attacks to be given guns for security purposes.
Misori further proposed for the teachers to be given military training before they are deployed to serve in the north-eastern and Coastal regions which have experienced a number of suspected Al Shabaab terror attacks.
According to Misori who drew support from the latest terror attack on a school in Kamuther village that left three teachers dead, the fact that teachers were unarmed makes them an easy target for the terrorists.
“Unarmed teachers are soft targets for terrorists as demonstrated in the Kamuthe attacks where they killed three teachers,” he stated
He went ahead to point out that it was time for the government to take drastic measures and arm the teachers.
“Each institution in northern Kenya must be well secured by armed police officers, it is time the government trained teachers on combat and armed them with guns,” he noted.
Misori revealed that teachers are left vulnerable at night especially after police officers have closed business for the day.
“Survivors say when police officers were informed they said they would wait until dawn to counter the attackers,” he added.
The union also called for a stop on de-localisation of teachers from the region as a way of countering the increasing insecurity.
The KUPPET officials also pleaded with Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang'i to have the government set up a base for the Kenya Defense Forces (KDF) in the Region.
A number of teachers have expressed their fear of serving in the area with some of them demanding for transfers.