Rethink closure of satellite campuses in Nairobi’s CBD

NAIROBI: The public notice by the Commission for University Education (CUE) which appeared in the lead print media on June 18 to close eight public and private university campuses in Nairobi's Central Business District (CBD) requires a critical, multi-dimensional reflection.

 

To start with, the Commission did not hold any consultative meeting with the chief executive officers of the institutions earmarked for closure. In a law-abiding society, the correct procedure in a situation that arises from some kind of audit is to engage the immediate stakeholders, in this case the universities and the parent ministry.

The parties involved should have deliberated on the alleged non-conformities and subsequently, where necessary, institute a feasible corrective action plan.

It is noteworthy that a number of the universities involved have academic and institutional reputations that have led to profound public trust in them.

It is thus unimaginable that these institutions would flagrantly run campuses that flout this trust as well as their visions and missions. It was draconian for the Commission to exclusively come to the conclusion of closing the campuses.

What are the consequences of the impending closure? The students and their parents/guardians would be immeasurably affected; the former more so as academic disruption directly bears on their lives and futures.

The suggestion that the students can be transferred to the main campuses of the affected universities is logistically unfathomable. These students made their university study choices principally considering the convenience of the Nairobi locale on their scholarly progress.

Regarding reasons for the shut-down order, the Commission's main argument is that the campuses are situated in areas that are not conducive for learning, primarily because of the vehicular and human noise in the vicinity.

Most of the campuses affected are on Nairobi's Moi Avenue, seen as suitable for easy student access.

Interestingly, some campuses on the same street were spared the axe. One wonders on which criterion, if the 'unacceptable noise levels' in the locale is the major reason for closure?

Further, the campuses of some public universities on Haile Selassie Avenue, no less noiseless itself, were not affected by the Commission's closure decision; raising the question, if the decision was in good faith and above board, why the selective application of rules?

The Commission also vaguely talks of some campuses being located beside 'bars and brothels'. A sample of the city buildings that host, for instance, St Paul's, Egerton, Africa Nazarene, Dedan Kimathi, among others, easily collapses this populist statement.

One would expect the Commission to be scientific about the 'unacceptable level' of noise. Wouldn't it have been professionally apt for the Commission to seek, or advise the universities to, the input of the National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA) and the County Government of Nairobi to address the noise levels? After all, it is not only the universities that should be affected by noise in Nairobi.

Then again, is it practical to expect pristine silence in Nairobi? As an Ibo proverb illumines, the amount of firewood a people have is enough for the cooking they have set to do. The satellite city campuses are precisely what they are, satellite. The city's space is measured in square foot and aerially, not obviously in acres. The Commission should be alive to such reality.

We support CUE in its mandate to 'promote the objectives of university education, by regulating and accrediting universities and programmes, among other functions'; but this support wanes when the Commission operates draconically and seemingly with vested interests.

When the Commission seems to be unreasonably targeting institutions that are primary to its vision of actualising 'accessible, relevant and sustainable quality university education', it leaves a lot to be desired.

The Commission should focus on an all-inclusive philosophy on the needs and responsibilities of the Kenyan university in the 21st century and how it can be facilitated to carry out its epistemological and related roles.

This can be attained through a solution-driven national dialogue.