School heads have been warned against sending money to individuals claiming to be facilitating teacher recruitment and promotion interviews after a fake message demanding contributions from public schools began circulating.
The communication, which has been shared on social media, targets heads of public basic education institutions and asks schools to raise money for the interviews. Institutions with Junior Secondary (JS) sections are instructed to contribute Sh1,000, while schools without JS sections are asked to provide Sh500.
According to the message, the contributions are to be sent to zonal chairpersons by Friday, September 11, 2026. It claims the money will help facilitate the smooth running of the recruitment and promotion interviews.
The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has since disowned the communication, warning school administrators not to act on the instructions or make any payments.
The commission said it had noted the circulation of the message online and moved to clarify that its services relating to teacher recruitment and promotion do not attract any fees.
“The commission wishes to clarify that no fees are levied for any services provided to teachers,” TSC said.
TSC said the recruitment and promotion of teachers fall within its main responsibilities and are handled through procedures that are meant to ensure openness and accountability.
“Recruitment and promotion remain core functions of TSC and are conducted in a transparent and accountable manner. These services are fully funded by TSC,” the commission said.
The commission further explained that it has put in place arrangements to ensure the officials overseeing the exercises at county level have sufficient resources to carry out their work.
“County directors are provided with adequate resources to undertake the exercise,” the commission said.
The clarification is likely to come as a relief to school administrators who may have been at risk of being pressured to collect the stated amounts or forward the money to people claiming to be coordinating the exercise.
TSC said schools should not raise funds to support recruitment or promotion interviews because the commission is responsible for meeting the costs involved.
It also cautioned heads of public basic education institutions against taking part in the fundraising exercise contained in the circulating message.
“All heads of public basic education institutions are hereby cautioned against participating in or entertaining such unauthorised engagements,” the Commission said.
The commission urged teachers and school administrators to remain alert when dealing with messages concerning official TSC activities, especially those that require them to make payments.
TSC said official recruitment and promotion exercises are conducted through its established channels, with the commission coordinating the process and providing the resources required.
Teachers and school heads have therefore been advised against sending money to anyone claiming to be collecting contributions on behalf of TSC in relation to recruitment or promotion interviews.
The commission said any communication directing teachers or schools to pay for such services should not be regarded as an official instruction from TSC.
It reiterated that teachers do not pay for recruitment or promotion services, which are financed by the commission as part of its responsibilities.