Court Orders University of Nairobi to Pay Former Student Sh500,000 over Delayed Master's Degree

The University of Nairobi (UoN) has been directed to pay a former student for delaying his master’s degree program for five years.

High Court Justice Weldon Korir ordered the institution to pay Sh500,000 to Paulpeter Makanda Makokha for delaying the program that normally takes two years.

The court ruled that the petitioner was unfairly treated by the university through his supervisor and should be compensated.

“The petitioner has also established that the unwarranted delay in the completion of his master’s studies violated his right to education. He had a legitimate expectation that he would complete his degree course within two years, as indicated in the letter of admission,” Justice Korir noted.

The court heard that Makhoha enrolled for the program in 2009 and should have graduated in two years but the supervisor, Robinson M Ocharo was uncooperative, leading to a delay in completion of his course and graduation. He did not graduate until 2016.

The complainant tabled text messages showing how he unsuccessfully sought an audience with Mr. Ocharo. He also ignored his calls.

Makhoha told the court that he traveled to Nairobi from Kakamega many times in a bid to meet his supervisor but he was still unavailable. 

He termed this a violation of his constitutional rights, adding that the delayed graduation hurt his chances of securing employment.