Police battle protesting MMUST students

Police in Landcruiser whisking away arrested protesting MMUST students. [Image: Nathan Ochunge]

Students of Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology (MMUST) have staged demonstrations over alleged myriad of grievances regarding timelines for paying fees, registration among other complaints.

Chaos gripped the institution as students stoned a university van. A response from the police resulted in arrest of unknown number of students following the Wednesday morning chaos.

In a memo seen by Standard Digital, dated September 17, 2019, the MMUST student leadership is calling upon students to take part in peaceful demonstrations tomorrow from 8.30 am.

MMUSO said in the memo that the university management must meet four of its grievances which it termed as ‘irreducible minimums.’

In its demands, the student body accuses the university management of effecting unprecedented fee payment deadline, internet breakdown leading to disappearance of marks in the portals, harassment of students in finance department and violation of its 2017 Constitution.

The student leadership has narrowed down to the Academic Registrar whom they accuse of setting deadline for fee clearance without consulting them when making such decision.

At the centre of this tussle also is the allegation that the management has failed to recognise the student leadership.

The university van had its windows shattered after students pelted it with stones. [Image: Nathan Ochunge]

Students now live in fear of being compelled to defer should they fail to pay fees on time.

This comes after the university management sent a memo requiring students to clear their balances before sitting for examinations.

The memo from the Registrar of Academics read in part: “This is to inform you that the deadline for reporting online, payment of fees and registration of courses has been extended to October 4, 2019.”

“Students who will not have paid all the fees and registered their courses will not be considered as students and shall be deemed to have deferred their studies,” it further stated.