Court comes to rescue of students in selection row
President Uhuru Kenyatta enjoys a dance with Kenya Medical Training College students in Mwingi, Kitui County, on June 11, 2016. KMTC and Kuccps have been fighting for the control of student selection. PHOTO | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- KUCCPS lawyer Steve Biko Osur said the cases being filed in court about the stalemate were many and that they were a recipe for a crisis in the higher education sector.
- Justice Ndung’u directed officials of the two institutions to appear in court on October 28, to give a report on whether they will have reached consent on who should conduct the admissions.
The High Court has ordered the admission of medical students selected by both the Kenya Medical Training College and the Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service.
The two government institutions have been fighting for the control of student selection.
Justice Anthony Ndung’u, sitting in Nakuru, directed that all the applicants, who were selected by the two bodies be admitted.
The judge gave the orders Thursday in a ruling on a petition filed by Mr Kyalo Kamina.
Represented by lawyer Sam Ogutu, Mr Kamina had sought a court interpretation on who, between the two parties, is mandated with the duty of choosing students for the KMTC’s 42 campuses across the country.
KUCCPS lawyer Steve Biko Osur said the cases being filed in court about the stalemate were many and that they were a recipe for a crisis in the higher education sector.
“These cases are too many and are likely to cause confusion in future. I pray that a lasting solution will be found to end this standoff,” Mr Osur told the court.
In a signed affidavit presented to the court, Mr Kamina said the two institutions advertised on their respective websites for the placement of qualified students to the college and that each selected its own successful applicants.
According to Mr Kamina, KUCCPS notified its successful candidates through an SMS and instructed them to collect their admission letters.
However, the students were turned away by the KMTC since it had its own list of successful applicants.
Mr Kamina argued that the two institutions had caused great confusion as one set of students stands to suffer.
He sought a court order restraining the KMTC from admitting any student for the 2016/2017 academic year pending judgment in the case.
Justice Ndung’u directed officials of the two institutions to appear in court on October 28, to give a report on whether they will have reached consent on who should conduct the admissions.
However, the lawyer representing Attorney-General Githu Muigai, Mr Nguyo Wachira, revealed that the AG intended to end the standoff by proposing an amendment to the law.
