Graduation

Kenya: Lecturers’ strike blights graduation for UoN medical students

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Africa/Kenya/11-10-2020/Author and Source: www.kbc.co.ke

Medical doctors, pharmacists and nurses undertaking their studies at the University of Nairobi and who were set to be conferred with honours this year risk missing out following a lecturers’ strike which commenced Thursday.

Lecturers drawn from the College of Health Sciences and Kenyatta National Hospital campus through a statement claim they have resolved to strike due to failure by the employer to pay clinical allowances.

University Academic Staff Union (UASU) Secretary-General Constantine Wasonga says his members feel short-changed over what he says is a unilateral withdrawal of payment of the clinical allowances by the University in complete disregard of employment and labour laws.

“The consequence of the strike is that unless the clinical allowances are reinstated, the UoN shall not graduate medical doctors, pharmacists and nurses this year,” read the statement.

According to Wasonga, staff in other Universities are receiving their clinical allowances without facing similar obstacles.

“….funding required for the clinical allowances was disbursed by the National Treasury in July to the campus accounts. As such, no additional funding is required,” he added.

Wasonga says UASU had given the campus numerous chances to resolve the dispute through dialogue with limited success.

According to UASU, as of Thursday morning, pending allowances which were to be cleared a week from 15th September 2020 have not been paid to the majority of the academic staff.

Wasonga saying the strike would have far-reaching effects because the country is in the middle of a pandemic and will also, derail the implementation of the Universal Health Coverage Agenda as envisaged.

This even as he maintained that his members will not be cowed by threats nor intimidations as they demand their rights.

Source and Image: https://www.kbc.co.ke/lecturers-strike-blights-graduation-for-uon-medical-students/

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Kenya University Students Protest Against Lecturers’ Strike

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Kenya/April 07, 2018/ Allafrica

Resumen: Estudiantes universitarios protestaron el miércoles en Nairobi contra la huelga de profesores que ha paralizado el aprendizaje durante más de un mes. Los estudiantes de varias universidades públicas acusaron al Ministerio de Educación de no abordar la crisis actual.

Students from various public universities have accused the education ministry of failing to address the crisis with striking lecturers, saying it is having a negative impact on their studies and causing them to graduate late.

University students on Wednesday protested in Nairobi against the lecturers’ strike that has paralysed learning for over a month.

The students from various public universities accused the Education ministry of failure to address the ongoing crisis.

Kenyatta University student Peter Evans said many of them were unable to graduate in time due to the strike and demanded that the government address the issue to prevent further agony.

«We are tired of staying in the university without learning. We want to go back to class,» Mr Evans.

GRADUATION

Another student, Mr Dennis Kipsigei, from the University of Nairobi, said they ended up staying in the institutions longer than they should.

«A degree course that is supposed to take only four years is now taking over six years, which is unacceptable. We want the Education ministry to look into the plight of students,» he urged.

Education Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohamed said she had not commented on the matter due to lack of accurate data on the staff of the public universities across the country.

«Now I can say with a measure of comfort that we have received 80 per cent of the data. We are going to assess it in collaboration with an inter-ministerial committee that is looking into the demands being raised and forge the way forward,» she said.

EMPLOYEES

However, Ms Mohamed reminded the lecturers that they were in contempt of court by failing to go back to work.

 The government has said it will use the data to make a counter-offer to the lecturers and other staff estimated to be 27,000.

The staff, who belong to the Universities Academic Staff Union (Uasu), the Kenya Universities Staff Union and the Kenya Union of Domestic, Hotels, Educational Institutions, Hospital and Allied Workers, challenged the Ms Mohamed to explain why the ministry did not have an accurate record of the public universities’ workers.

Uasu Secretary-General Constantine Wasonga said the Ms Mohamed had failed in her mandate if the ministry could not give the exact number of the employees.

«How can she not know the number of employees in the universities? This shows that the ministry has not been doing its work properly,» said Dr Wasonga.

MEETING

As the protests continued, Deputy President William Ruto was holding a meeting with officials from the Education ministry and the Treasury.

Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich and Basic Education Principal Secretary Belio Kipsang attended the meeting.

However, Ms Mohamed was at Mary Hill Girls High School in Kiambu County for the prize-giving day.

«Held discussion with officials of the ministries of Education and National Treasury, Nairobi,» Mr Ruto tweeted.

His spokesman, Mr David Mugonyi, later told the Nation the discussions between the DP and the officials were on secondary and tertiary education.

Fuente: http://allafrica.com/stories/201804050182.html

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