Expelled University of Nairobi students sue varsity

Eight students who were expelled by the University of Nairobi (UoN) over the riots that rocked the institution in April have moved to the High Court to challenge the decision.

The students are seeking orders to suspend the university’s decision, saying they were not given a chance to defend themselves.

The eight now want the court to compel the university to accept them back.

In their court papers, the eight argued that they were unfairly suspended since no CCTV footage was presented before the Senate Disciplinary Committee to show the faces of students who participated in the riots.

The university was closed after students protested the results of student union elections, in which Babu Owino was declared winner for the 4th consecutive time.

The students include Owino’s challenger in the poll Michael Jacobs, Harold Mugozi, Elwak Benedict, Mark Ojwang, Anthony Otieno, Raymond Bramuel, Paul Ayanga and Arthur Oriwo.

This comes as Mike Jacobs was released on a free bond after he was arraigned in court Tuesday morning to face arson and destruction of property charges in relation to the recent student’s unrest at the institution.

Jacobs was not charged after the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) recalled his file for further investigations. He was arrested Monday evening and he spent the night at the Central Police Station.

Last Tuesday, the University of Nairobi was re-opened  amid stringent rules to ensure order in the university.

All students were ordered to fill in new personal data forms before they could be accepted back, with all expelled and suspended students denied access to the university compounds in all campuses.

The University of Nairobi was closed on April 5th after students protested the re-election of Babu Owino as their union leader.

The protests turned chaotic when students burnt Students Organisation of Nairobi University (SONU) offices and blocked a section of University Way and Uhuru Highway before police used teargas to disperse them.

In late April, the University expelled 33 students, including SONU aspirant Mike Jacobs over the chaos that led to closure of the institution.