Kyambogo University students ask court to block graduation

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | 45 students of Kyambogo University have petitioned the High Court in Kampala seeking an interim injunction restraining the institution from holding the 17th graduation ceremony.

The students led by Kenneth Masereka want the graduation that is slated to start on September 21st to September 23rd 2021, halted pending the determination of their case where they are challenging the decision to exclude them from the graduation list.

Evidence submitted before the court shows that the applicants successfully pursued different courses at Kyambogo University and they passed all the subjects undertaken according to the information on their respective student portals run and managed by the University.

They contend that following the information on the University Portal which shows that they had passed, they prepared for the graduation and also cleared tuition and graduation fees.

According to the students, between September 7th and 13th, the University acting through different heads of the department published various graduation lists which excluded them without any reasonable cause.

“The respondent through the aforesaid decision seeks to arbitrarily gag the students right to education, curtail possible employment opportunities, impose unconstitutional limitations and blanket abuse of administrative which are not acceptably and demonstrably justifiable in a free and democratic society and what is provided for under the constitution and the law”, reads the application.

According to the students, the directives infringe on a bundle of constitutionally guaranteed rights of the students like the right to be heard, presumption of innocence, the right to equality before under the law, the right to practice their professions and the right to fair and just administrative treatment.

“Unless restrained by this Honorable Court, the respondent/Kyambogo University will freeze and stagnate the citizen’s right to education which is very essential in the development of a modern country.

The students through their lawyers of Joel Cox Advocates say that they will suffer irreparable damages if the court doesn’t halt next week’s graduation ceremony until their names are fixed on the graduation list.

In the main suit, they also want the court to declare that the decision to exclude them from the list is illegal, oppressive, arbitrary, biased, high handed, irrational, unfair, a breach of the fundamental right to be heard and thus the same is null and void.

Patricia Nansamba, one of the affected students who has been pursuing her Bachelor’s Degree in Oil and Gas Production says it’s not their responsibility as students to look for their marks because theirs is to clear the school dues, study and excel.

Reagan Francis Sensalo says that the University management tasked them to pay graduation fees which they did but still they haven’t appeared on the list but were only promised transcripts

Last month, Kyambogo University reported that a system database that houses students data was deleted online leaving about 29,000 students affected including prospective graduands.

However, Kyambogo University Vice-Chancellor Professor Eli Katunguka has since indicated that they are hopeful that the results and data will be retrieved.

The Criminal Investigations Department of Police has also since commenced inquiries into the incident.

More than 7,000 students are expected to graduate next week. The case is yet to be fixed for hearing.

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