Varsity explains why embattled Mombasa governor was admitted

What you need to know:

  • The acknowledgement by the institution that it admitted Mr Joho without looking at his KCSE results raises questions about the document-verification mechanisms at Kenyan universities.
  • A damning report by CUE released last month revealed that most universities had elaborate systems for awarding of degrees.

The university where embattled Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho studied for his second bachelor’s degree now says it admitted him on the strength of a degree awarded by a foreign university.

Gretsa University Vice-Chancellor Kuria Thuo defended the decision to admit Mr Joho to study for a Bachelor of Commerce degree, saying the previous Bachelor of Business Administration degree awarded to him by Kampala International University in Uganda had been recognised by the Commission for University Education (CUE) as required by the Universities Act.

“However, for now, Gretsa University does not deem it prudent to make further comments on the matter as it is still under DCI probe,” said Prof Thuo.

LETTER OF INTERIM AUTHORITY

The university is among three institutions that have sought to renew their Letter of Interim Authority and their applications are still pending before Education Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i‘s office.

Mr Joho is under probe for allegedly forging his Kenya Certificate of Secondary (KCSE) examination certificate.

The acknowledgement by the institution that it admitted Mr Joho without looking at his KCSE results raises questions about the document-verification mechanisms at Kenyan universities.

Mr Joho, according to Gretsa, started his studies in 2014 under the Distance Learning Programme and concluded them in 2016.

This is after an earlier degree he acquired from Kampala University in Uganda was disputed by the Uganda National Council of Higher Education the same year.

DAMNING CUE REPORT

In December last year, Prof Thuo told the Nation that the university is required by CUE to strictly adhere to the stipulated entry requirements for degree programmes, which is a C+ (plus) in KCSE or a relevant diploma, and in particular to ensure that any holder of a foreign university degree has been duly cleared by CUE.

“I can assure you that the university is duty bound to comply with these requirements and CUE inspects to ensure this is done,” he said then.

A damning report by CUE released last month revealed that most universities had elaborate systems for awarding of degrees.

“However, some of the universities printed degree certificates internally. In one university the registrar generated certificates internally.

"The Commission noted weak security controls in terms of printing, storage and sealing of certificates, thus compromising the integrity of certificates,” revealed the report.