Dedan Kimathi and Karatina Universities go on Rampage

Students at Nyeri County’s Dedan Kimathi and Karatina Universities were sent home indefinitely after going on strike and damaging property worth millions of shillings.

Students from the two universities went home on Wednesday after destroying classrooms, schools buses and even private vehicles. Their cry is something that has been brewing for some time now, but which they say has not been addressed.

Dedan Kimathi University is supposed to produce Engineers, but the students say they are not recognized by the engineering board of Kenya when they graduate and they are blaming the university. They say their attempt to dialogue with the university administration has failed and the vice chancellor has refused to address their concern.

The Engineering Board of Kenya however says that accrediting programs takes time and the two universities are among those that have submitted their programs for accreditation and could could get the thumbs up in the next few months. The board says a university is supposed to pay Sh 300,000 for each engineering program or degree. It then scrutinizes the courses, teaching staff and the facilities

For now, students at the two universities who are taking courses which are not accredited may be forced to go back to class and take extra lessons.

The big question remains; why are universities teaching programs which have not been approved by the board, and oblivious parents and students being lured to pay  for such degrees? Some of these Universities were constituent colleges but they are now independent. The board says such institutions should not severe ties with their mother universities before they have built their own facilities and are able to survive independently, as this complicates their accreditation process.