TSC Not Liable For Private School Teachers’ Actions, Court Rules In A Three-Year-Old Case.
The High Court dismissed a three-year-old case filed by a parent code-named CAK seeking compensation after two teachers allegedly beat her son.
The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) cannot be held liable for the actions of private school teachers, the High Court ruled in a case seeking a ban on corporal punishment.
Although the commission regulates teaching practice in Kenya, Justice Christine Meoli ruled that parents with children in private institutions cannot hold the commission liable for what happens to their children.
“In this case, it is doubtful that vicarious liability can be imputed upon the commission for the wrongful acts employed by a private school,” ruled justice Meoli.
The parent, enraged, has vowed to appeal to the Court of Appeal. CAK had petitioned the court to impose a ban on caning in schools.
The case was filed against three teachers, Emily Kulola, Ann Wanjiru, and Peterson Gichuki, as well as the ACK Thika Memorial Church School’s board of management and TSC.
CAK is requesting that the court create a policy that completely eliminates corporal punishment in the case. She also wants restitution and an apology for caning her child. The apology will be printed in a newspaper.
The parent argued, through lawyer John Chigiti, that her child’s right to an education, good health, and protection from harm was violated when he was punished, forcing her to transfer him to another school.
"On or about January 2016, the first respondent (Kulola) used excessive force and malice in viciously beating the child with her bare hands and pinched him with her fingers and nails and on the inner arm, breaking his skin and causing the minor a lot of pain, bruises bleeding and harm,” she claimed.
In 2012, the government banned corporal punishment in schools and enacted legislation to protect children from abuse.
However, kneeling down, forced manual labor, caning, slapping, pinching, and pulling of the ears are still common forms of punishment for students.
TSC CEO Nancy Macharia and Eric Simiyu, CAS Treasury, in Nakuru East at the KNEC exams distribution center
According to CAK, her child was forced to stay at home for three days to recover from his injuries. She claimed that her son had lost use of his hand.
CAK claimed that the teacher offered her Sh8,500 in compensation and an apology letter in an attempt to settle the dispute.
Chigiti noted that instead of taking the issue seriously, the headmaster, who is the third respondent (Gichuki), mocked the mother for leaving the child at school despite the fact that the teacher had paid for the treatment.
CAK claimed she spent Sh500,000 on hospital bills and child care as a result of the incident.
“The petitioner prays for an order compelling TSC to draw a policy that eliminates corporal punishment,” she continued.
The commission requested that the case be dismissed by the court. It stated that there are no laws granting it authority over private schools.
ALSO READ:
According to court documents, the child began wetting his bed, became jumpy and withdrawn, and was frequently sick. The minor later stated that he was beaten on a daily basis, at times by multiple teachers.
Viola Kihara, TSC’s deputy director in charge of discipline, argues in a reply filed before the High Court that, while the regulator requires that all teachers be on its register, its role is limited to only de-registering those teachers who have been forwarded by private school boards over discipline.
Over 70,000 Teachers Deployed By TSC To Supervise KCSE
TSC Not Liable For Private School Teachers’ Actions, Court Rules In A Three-Year-Old Case.