Lecturers at Moi University Strike, Disrupting Learning Activities
Learning activities at Moi University’s main campus and its satellite campuses in Nairobi and Mombasa have been halted after lecturers went on strike yesterday. The decision to down tools was reached during a heated four-hour meeting organized by the University Academic Staff Union (UASU) Moi University Chapter in Eldoret town.
Led by UASU chapter chairman Richard Okero and Secretary Ojuki Nyabuta, more than 900 lecturers resolved to boycott classes—both online and physical—until the university management addresses their grievances. The lecturers’ demands include the prompt payment of delayed salaries, fair promotion practices, and the remittance of pension contributions, which they claim have not been paid by the university.
“We have deliberated, discussed, and resolved as academic staff that no teaching, be it online or physical, shall take place at Moi University and its satellite campuses spread across the country until our demands are addressed by the concerned authority,” said Okero during the meeting.
Okero also criticized the university’s management for allegedly attempting to undermine the strike by using the deans of various schools, including the School of Information Science, to intimidate and threaten striking lecturers.
“We are aware of a scheme being employed by the university management to curtail our strike by using deans of various schools and colleges to intimidate and threaten our members from joining in the strike that has officially kicked off,” Okero added.
The union chairman revealed that lecturers have been receiving only half of their salaries for several months, and their attempts to meet with the Vice Chancellor to discuss the issue have been unsuccessful.
“The VC has refused to engage us in talks over our plight despite several requests. It is now time to show him that we also matter,” Okero lamented.
Further compounding the lecturers’ grievances, Okero claimed that 53 lecturers have been blacklisted by Faulu Bank for defaulting on loan repayments. He accused the university of deducting loan repayments from the lecturers’ salaries without remitting the funds to the bank, leading to the auctioning of some lecturers’ assets, including land and vehicles.
“Some of our members have had their movable and immovable assets among them land and vehicles being auctioned by the bank for failure to service their loans which is not their mistake,” Okero stated.
The union claims that its members owe various banks a total of KSh 1.1 billion in loans, yet the university has continued to deduct money from their salaries purportedly for repayment.
“We are calling on investigative agencies to move with speed and probe the matter because we have been wondering where the monthly deductions that are made from our members’ salaries was going to,” Okero urged.
The strike has disrupted both online and physical classes, leaving students uncertain about when learning will resume. The university management has yet to issue a statement on the strike or address the lecturers’ concerns.
Post Author
