NAIROBI, Kenya, Aug 26 – Ruaraka MP TJ Kajwang’ and Seme MP James Nyikal have challenged National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula to substantiate claims that MPs receive Teachers Service Commission (TSC) employment letters for distribution to constituents.The two lawmakers said they were ready to receive the letters if they existed, while questioning the Speaker’s account of how the alleged employment opportunities were being allocated.Speaking at Parliament Buildings on Wednesday, Dr Nyikal and Kajwang’ dismissed suggestions that distributing teacher employment letters to constituents would amount to political patronage.Kajwang’ said constituents would welcome any assistance that helped jobseekers secure employment.“If I could get the letters from wherever quarters and give them to residents of Ruaraka Constituency, they would be happy. They would vote me in,” Kajwang’ said.He was responding to remarks by Wetang’ula over the weekend that some MPs receive as many as 10 TSC employment letters to help secure teaching jobs for people in their constituencies.The Speaker, however, alleged that some politicians turn the opportunities into a source of personal enrichment by selling the letters to desperate jobseekers.Wetang’ula claimed that some of the opportunities had allegedly been sold for as much as Sh400,000, raising questions about the integrity of the teacher recruitment process and the constitutional independence of the TSC.Kajwang’, however, turned the allegations back on the Speaker, challenging him to explain where the letters were and whether they were being held in his office.“I am still looking for those letters. I want to know where they are, and so that I can take them to Ruaraka,” he said.He said MPs would demand an explanation from Wetang’ula on the Floor of the House.“As to whether Speaker Wetang’ula went out there and said what he said, we will wait for him on the Floor to tell us where those letters are. If he is holding them in his office, we will break that door to get those letters,” Kajwang’ said.He also rejected suggestions that MPs could be selling the alleged letters for personal gain.“If we are selling them, you know we are not cheap people, Bwana. Please, we are not cheap people to sell,” he said.Nyikal said he and other Nyanza MPs had not accompanied Wetang’ula to State House to receive TSC employment letters.“I know for myself, I know for these members, we did not accompany Hon Wetang’ula to State House and were given letters for TSC recruitment,” Dr Nyikal said.“I think that is the basic answer that we can tell you,” he added.His remarks sought to distance the MPs present from the process described by the Speaker and cast doubt on the suggestion that legislators routinely receive TSC appointment letters for distribution to constituents.The claims have created an unusual dispute among senior parliamentary officials and lawmakers over how teacher employment opportunities are allegedly handled. Wetang’ula has not publicly named the MPs he accused of selling employment opportunities, nor identified specific beneficiaries or presented evidence of the alleged transactions.The allegations have nonetheless triggered calls for an investigation into the claims.National Assembly Education Committee chairman and Tinderet MP Julius Melly said the committee would not tolerate the sale or distribution of TSC employment letters by politicians or other individuals.Melly said the committee would consider credible complaints and seek evidence and clarification over the allegations.The controversy has also revived questions about the constitutional mandate and independence of the TSC.Article 237 of the Constitution establishes the Commission and gives it responsibility for registering trained teachers and recruiting and employing registered teachers.The recruitment process is therefore expected to be guided by established criteria rather than political allocation.Critics have argued that the distribution of appointment letters through politicians would undermine the Commission’s independence and public confidence in merit-based recruitment.Former Law Society of Kenya president Faith Odhiambo has called for an investigation, describing alleged political involvement in teacher recruitment as a constitutional matter.Teacher unions KNUT and KUPPET have also raised concerns, arguing that handing employment letters to politicians would expose recruitment to political patronage and disadvantage qualified teachers competing through the formal process.The allegations come at a sensitive time, with thousands of trained teachers seeking employment amid continued pressure on the Government to address staffing shortages in public schools.The TSC has advertised 20,000 permanent and pensionable teaching vacancies for Junior Secondary Schools, with applications running from August 18 to August 31, 2026.The Commission has also advertised 34,016 promotion opportunities.