The Education Ministry is under pressure to end recurring university strikes that have disrupted learning and piled pressure on students and parents, with MPs demanding a lasting solution to disputes between university management and academic staff.
The Public Accounts Committee on Thursday, October 22, questioned Principal Secretary for Higher Education and Research Beatrice Inyangala over the persistent industrial unrest as it examined the Auditor-General’s reports for the 2024/2025 financial year.
The committee, chaired by Butere MP Tindi Mwale, challenged the State Department to explain the measures being taken to resolve lecturers’ grievances and prevent further disruptions to academic programmes.
Members warned that continued strikes were placing an additional burden on students and their parents, calling on the Ministry to address the disputes through a lasting agreement with university unions.
Inyangala told the committee that the Government remained committed to dialogue and had been engaging university unions since last year in an effort to resolve the grievances behind the industrial unrest.
She disclosed that some of the issues raised by university lecturers were also being discussed separately with the Public Service Commission, as negotiations continued with unions and other stakeholders.
“Some of the issues the dons have raised are under parallel discussion with the Public Service Commission. We are negotiating with all stakeholders, including the unions, and we will resolve this matter soon,” she assured the committee.
The committee also questioned the Ministry over delays in appointing substantive vice-chancellors, warning that prolonged acting appointments could undermine leadership and decision-making in public universities.
Mwale asked the Ministry to explain its plans to resolve the leadership uncertainty, noting that officials serving in acting positions could be reluctant to make major decisions because of uncertainty about their future.
“The issue of acting vice-chancellors and other top university officials is a very uncomfortable subject. What is the Ministry doing to address this matter?” he posed.
Inyangala said the Ministry was working with university councils to conclude substantive appointments, expressing hope that the process would be completed by the end of the current academic year in June 2027.
The meeting was attended by Acting Moi University Vice-Chancellor Prof. Kiplagat Kotut, Cooperative University Vice-Chancellor Prof. Kamau Ngamau and Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology Vice-Chancellor Prof. Emily Akuno, among other officials.
With the Ministry promising to resolve the disputes through negotiations, attention now turns to whether the ongoing talks will deliver a lasting agreement and prevent further interruptions to university education.
