Puzzle of UoN students missing from graduation list
Faculty of Business Management Science student Lokuyono Ebenyo Michael at the University of Nairobi Main Campus graduation square in Nairobi on December 12, 2024, during an interview after his name was missing from the graduation list.
What you need to know:
- 49 students appealed to the university and 30 of them were cleared to graduate.
- Undergraduate students with a fee balance of less than Sh2,000 and postgraduate students with a balance of Sh5,000 were allowed to graduate, said John Orindi, the university's director of corporate affairs.
On November 18, Mr Michael Lokuyono, a Bachelor of Finance student at the University of Nairobi, received a congratulatory message from the university administration. The message was simple; he was one of the First Class Honours graduands at the 72nd graduation ceremony held at the Graduation Square. He was asked by the university administration to confirm the order of his names and make sure everything was ready for the 'big day'.
While Mr Lokuyono was making preparations, he told his parents in Lokichogio, Turkana, the good news and urged them to travel to Nairobi for the graduation. But on December 4, Mr Lokuyono told Nation.Africa that he had received a separate message that he was not on the graduation list. The congratulatory message was hastily removed from his portal, but he had already taken a screenshot and shared it on social media before it was taken down.
What followed, he says, were long days at the university administration trying to find out why he was not on the graduation list, which ended in futility. On Wednesday, he and other students say they held a meeting with the university administration that turned chaotic. A contingent of police officers was deployed at the university's Lower Kabete campus, where most of the students are based.
“I feel so much frustrated and I have not slept for the past few days. This is psychological torture. I inquired and I was told by the administration that my name was flagged by mistake. Whose mistake is it? Why should I be denied the chance to graduate yet I have met all the requirements?” he told Nation.Africa.
For other students like Ms Felisters Georgia, a Bachelor of Commerce student, she had already made plans for the graduation ceremony. Her parents had travelled from Kisumu to Nairobi to see her graduate, but now they will not be able to see their daughter graduate.
“It is a really embarrassing moment. For the past two weeks, I have gone to the administration to inquire about my case but I am always told to wait. We sought audience to iron out our issues but this has not been forthcoming. My parents do not even understand what is happening. They will see me as a liar,” she told Nation.Africa.
Faculty of Business Management Science student Jonathan Mutembei (second right) flanked by fellow students at the University of Nairobi Main Campus graduation square in Nairobi on December 12, 2024, during an interview after his name was not on the graduation list.
Jonathan Mutembei says he had already paid his university graduation fees and completed the verification process. That was until two days ago, when they were told they had not made to the list.
“We were told that we were not in the list because the university administration started auditing the list and as late as yesterday, our names were missing. We are confused about what to do for the next one year. We are demanding that the administration should give us solutions,” Mr Mutembei said.
Hundreds of students gathered at the graduation square to express their displeasure with the university administration.
However, the university denied that eligible students had been excluded from the graduation list.
“The final list is the one from the university senate. The senate sat on Tuesday and approved the list. Anyone who has cleared with the university have their details taken to the senate. There’re people who have not cleared because of different reasons like non-payment of fees or they didn’t pass some units,” said John Orindi, the university's director of corporate affairs.
He said that on Wednesday, 49 students appealed to the university and 30 of them were cleared to graduate. He said that undergraduate students with a fee balance of less than Sh2,000 and postgraduate students with a balance of Sh5,000 were allowed to graduate.
“There’s no uniform problem. Everyone has a unique problem,” Mr Orindi said.
Mr Orindi also said the university administration was in the process of investigating whether there was a systemic lapse, as most of the students affected were from the business school.
“We are investigating whether there was an administrative lapse or not. We are investigating whether it is the students who wanted to cheat through the system or it is an administrative issue or system weaknesses. But there is nobody who has qualified to graduate who is being denied the chance,” he added.
