Kenyan Wits

2020 has been a year like no other. From America electing the first woman vice president to Coronavirus decimating populations worldwide, the year leaves an indelible mark in our memories as the most dramatic year of the decade. Yet Kenyans have had even more drama to take. Corruptions scandals, as always, have dominated the year, bringing to attention the infinite greed politicians and business people have to the extent of sacrificing thousands of lives to be richer. How do you steal money meant to protect Kenyans from Corona, a deadly virus? I mean, it’s just despicable what people can do out here. Meanwhile, the BBI mantra continues to resonate; some people hope it will solve Mwananchi’s problems while others see no actual benefit from the constitutional changes it suggests. Schools have closed throughout the year, forcing parents and children to spend more time together at home. Consequently, the modern families’ cracks have revealed themselves demonstrably courtesy of increas...

The KUCCPS is inviting KCSE holders who might have missed placement in Degree, Diploma, Certificate and Artisan courses to apply for TVET courses as from 15 th October 2020. This comes shortly after the inter-university transfer window was closed. The service had enabled students who were unsatisfied with their placement in various institutions to transfer to more preferred institutions. The announcement was published on 5 th October to inform students of the upcoming opportunity which is set to run until November 5 th . Interested students have this once in a year opportunity to be admitted in National polytechnics Technical Training Institutes or other (TVET) institutions where they can pursue their dreams. For one to apply for placement in TVET institutions, they must have attained the following grades: Mean Grade of D – (minus) and below for Artisan Certificate Courses Mean Grade of D (plain) and above for Craft Certificate Courses; and Mean Grade of C – (Minus) and above ...

A UoN graduate engineer has come out to narrate a disheartening story of the inhumane working conditions he had to persevere while working under an exploitative Indian employer. Wyregi who graduated in September 2019 with a Bachelor in Mechanical Engineering found himself working as a bottle top packaging slave at Metal Crowns Limited located in Industrial Area and discovered the depths of ruthlessness that Hindi employers are famous for. He was required to work for 18 hours with a 10-minute break for meals daily, meals that would be deducted together with taxes, from their meagre salary considering the serious profits the company makes. Wyregi’s story is just one of the many stories we hear daily of foreigners who come to our country and put Kenyans into suffering and basing their acts on the high unemployment rate in the country. The other day a Chinese national was recorded on camera caning employees . But you know the saddest thing about it all? These foreign nationals continue to ...

Every day millions of shillings, illegally acquired, are stashed in bags and moved around secretly from place to place exchanging hands and deposited in bank accounts while Wanjiku struggles to put a meal on the table. This money that would have been used to incentivize the daily struggle of Wanjiku, is swiftly and easily tricking down to the pockets of a few individuals who then begin the process of making it untraceable and ‘clean’. Wanjiku’s fate is sealed, she was born to suffer, and the system is here to ensure that. Meanwhile, Mheshimiwa drives big cars and lives life in the first lane. He believes in the system. The system will protect him. This might disturb your conscience but the greatest undoing that begot Kenya might have been the early independence we attained. Of course, the colonial rule had its problems but at least there was order; economic and judicial order. Social order was amiss courtesy of the authoritarian and discriminative rule evident with the British Colonial...

Moi University alumni who graduated in 2019 December can now clear and book for the collection of transcripts and degree certificates online. This is after the administration published a notice on MU’s website on 11 th June with guidelines on how students can collect their documents. On 19 th December, last year, thousands of students graduated from Moi University during the 39 th graduation ceremony since the institution was founded in 1984. The ceremony was attended by thousands of people as family member attended to congratulate their learned kins. More than 7 months down the line, these students can finally begin collecting their transcripts and certificates despite the Corona Pandemic which has slowed down all systems and processes. Moi University has launched an online clearance and booking system for collection of transcripts and certificates which ought to be done in an orderly manner to avoid commotion and thus compromise the safety of graduates from the virus. The procedu...

Since the Presidentordered all learning institutions in Kenya to be closed due to the Coronavirus Pandemic ,students have become unoccupied as they stay at home to avert the spread of thevirus. Consequently, scholarshave been forced to wait for governments and health workers to bring thepandemic into control for schools to open and learning to resume. However, USIU – Kenya,(United States International University) is taking no chance in providingquality and timely education for its scholars. During the two weekspreceding the president’s announcement, the institution has indulged itsstudents in online learning through its advanced online platform, Blackboardfor instructional purposes and Zoom as their video conferencing tool. The innovativecombination lets interaction between lectures and students and access tolearning recourses seamless, thus providing a great learning experience withoutthe need for brick and mortar lecture rooms. Students use theirlaptops and internet to access th...

Once in a while the Ministry of Education announces the HELB waiver for all HELB beneficiaries in Kenya. This announcement is yet to be made in 2020. This announcement comes with a sigh of relief for many yet in real terms is not beneficial to many as expected. First, for the sake ofclarity, a waiver is a voluntary removal of a certain charge or money owned.The HELB loan waiver is meant to reduce the amount of money required to be paidby a HELB beneficiary. At least that’s what most expect. Annually the Minister ofEducation would announce a waiver on HELB loans. It comes in differentpercentages for instance 80% or 100%waiver that CS Amina gave in 2018 . This waiver however usually applies topenalties only and not the entire loan amount. Also, you are given thecondition to repay your entire loan in a lump sum over about 3 months to enjoythe HELB penalty waiver. Well, this doesn’t seem fair! The idea behind thewaiver is to make it easier for HELB beneficiaries to repay their loans fromth...

On Monday the 17th of February, the KUCCPS Portal was opened after a press statement by the CEO of KUCCPS, Dr. John Muraguri. According to the press statement a total of 688,928 students were placed in tertiary institutions.  This is 10817 studentsless than the number of students who sat for KCSE 2019 representing a 98.45%placement. 125,449 who managed toscore C+ and above were placed in universities while 563,479 who scored C, D,or E, were placed in Technical and Vocational Education Training institutions. Meanwhile, alluniversities declared a total capacity of 193,878 which absorbed 100% ofall qualified students. TVET institutions had a total capacity of 350,000 whichcould only absorb 62% of the students who scored between C and E. However, the board notedthat other TVET institutions were offering additional training opportunitieswhich will absorb the remaining 38%.  The board indicated thatthe portal will be open until 9th March 2020 allowing the students to revisetheir pla...

Kisumu National polytechnic has been closed indefinitely today morning after students went on a rampage over unprecedented hiking of fees and abuse of power by the deputy principal among other issues. Earlier on, studentsgathered at the basketball courts following a notice signed and circulated by Kisumu National Polytechnic Student Association(KINOPSA) Secretary-General Mr. Amos Oduor and Chairman Mr. Joseph Mbaka. The notice urged studentsto boycott classes and join the union in a peaceful demonstration after theadministration had allegedly failed to address their grievances. Students later pouredinto the streets, blocked Nyamasaria – Kondele road and paralyzed transportbefore being dispersed by Anti-Riot police. Apparently, theadministration had hikedstudent fees by Ksh 6000 for some and Ksh 10000 for others a move that hasfinancially overburdened most students in the institution. Besides, the studentleaders were also demanding the reinstatement of more than 1000 students whoh...

KUCCPS 2020 intake iscurrently under preparation but the application window for 2019 KCSE candidatesis not open yet. However, the portal is likely to open within the next 7 days toallow students to revise their program selections. In the meantime, let’s get abetter understanding of KUCCPS, the application process and much more Update: The portal will be open for first revision as from 17th Feb to 9th March . What is KUCCPS? The Kenya Universitiesand Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS) is a body corporate establishedunder the Universities act of 2012 that is mandated, among other functions, to coordinatethe placement of government-sponsored students to universities and colleges. KUCCPS has the largestdatabase of universities and colleges in Kenya and all the eligible programsthey offer since it registers all the institutions eligible for students’placement, a necessary part of data collection. As of this year 2020, it offers placement in 542-degree programs, 216 diploma programs...

If you are form 4 graduate who has not yet joined aninstitution of tertiary education; college, university or technical institute,and would wish to join a Technical and Vocational Education and Traininginstitution, the deadline for application is on 31 st December. This program administered by the Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service gives you the chance to pursue Diplomas, Craft Certificates or Artisan Certificates offered by Technical institutions, Vocational training institutions, and National Polytechnics In order to be accepted in either of these programs, you arerequired to have the following KCSE Grades C- (minus) and above for Diploma Courses D and above for Craft Certificate D – (minus) and below for Artisan Certificate To apply, log into the KUCCPS Student portal, read all the application guidelines carefully before you start the application process for the available programs. Also, note that only students that have not benefited from any government...

There is a little stormin Twitter right now #MakerereUniversityInstitute .And it all started when esteemed Makerere University through its officialtwitter handle announced the cordial invitation of Kenya’s Vice President WilliamRuto to the ceremonial launching of, get this: William Ruto “LEADERSHIP”Institute. Well, first of all, guys,should we warn our kins from Uganda, or should we let them learn fromexperience? Here is a hint: in 2015, some kids were tear-gassed while fightingfor their playground, which Weston Hotel was allegedly attempting to snatchthem. Ugandans, go research the man behind Weston and guard your playgrounds. Now onto the hazelnut inthis bite, President Museveni of Uganda has honored VP Ruto of Kenya by naminga leadership institute after him. Through a memo sent on 17 th Dec byMakerere University Vice-Chancellor, Barnabas Wanangwe, the latter wasinvited to lay the foundation stone for the institute on 21 st December. So, Kaguta Museveni, aninfamous African dictator...

Egerton comrades havesaid enough is enough to the unbearable terms that the administration has beenshoving down their throats. Yesterday they took part in Kenya’s mostexhilarating no holds barred sport, which involves a Comrade’s Power haka,pelting of stones on helpless buildings and sprinting when the boys in bluemake an appearance. Also, not forgetting to take selfies and videos for fellowunemployed youths. Coincidentally, this comesonly two days after Maseno comrades ‘downed their tools’ and not more than amonth after JKUAT ,KU and two other universities demonstrated. Is there a ‘stike-ghost’ flying aroundthe country making comrades feisty-horny? Or do they have genuinegrievances? Apparently, Egerton has been on a fees scavenging frenzy. Theadministration has imposed additional fees ‘from the Milky Way and fatal deadlines.Any student who fails to settle their arrears within the limited time will notseat for exams and thus forcefully defer an entire year. Based on just this one condi...

The University of NairobiCollege of Humanities and Social Sciences and College of Health Sciences willbe holding the 62 nd graduation ceremony on 20 th December2019. The university administration announced through the website on the event,which will be held at the Chancellor’s Court main campus. UoN Is recognized as the crèmede la crème institution of tertiary education in the country and in EasternAfrica. Since its full founding in 1970, it has produced the highest number ofgraduates in the country; more than 240,000 according to its fact file . The upcoming graduationceremony will only be enhancing the footprint of the institution locally andinternationally considering that more than 9000 students are poised tograduate. However, the conditions for graduation might lock out some students,as previously evident for instance in previous Moi Universitygraduation ceremonies. Requirements According to the memo , onlythose that had completed paying their fees by 20 November will graduate....

Moi University Administration has announced in a memo through the office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor Academics the dates for the upcoming Moi University Graduation Ceremony. The event is poised to take place on 19 December 2019 at the main campus pavilion and is the 39 th graduation ceremony since the institution was established in 1984. According to the memo , only students who have cleared with finance and confirmed their results with their respective Deans will be allowed to graduate. This directive comes not forgetting that the institution has been notorious complaints of missing marks during graduation periods over the last decade with the recent case affecting more than 700 students in the 38 th graduation less than 4 months ago. Graduates will also be required to pay graduation and alumni fees, which are a bit higher than what JKUAT graduates pay. The payments should be made only through Moi University National Bank Account Number: 01021029582000. The fees will be asfollow...

Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology isset to hold its 34 th graduation on Friday, 29 th November2019. The university will graduate a grand total of 4733 graduates; 2802 malesand 1931 females. More specifically, the award will be as follows: Award Male Female Total Diplomas 297 218 515 Bachelor’s Degree 2106 1445 3551 Post Graduate Diploma 78 81 159 Master’s Degree – JKUAT 194 146 340 Master’s Degree – PAUISTI 55 15 70 Doctorate Degree – PAUISTI 36 8 44 Doctorate Degree -JKUAT 36 18 54 Total 2802 1931 4733 JKUAT, which was inaugurated in December 1994, is consideredone of the top 10 institutions in the country. It is known for technical coursesin engineering, technology, and agriculture and has produced some of the most acclaimedprofessionals in the country and around the world. Notably, the number of PhDs pro...

JKUAT main campus has been closed indefinitely as of Mon, Nov 11, 2019 at 10:00 AM following an official statement released through the institution Administration. This comes after JKUAT student strike due to insecurity around Juja. Earlier on the institution’s student body, JKUSA communicated through social media platforms, a scheduled peaceful demonstration to air grievances on the laxity of police in ensuring the security of students. What agitated this move was the recent stabbing of a student as early as 4 pm within the university town. The demonstration however turned violent as students engaged in running battles with GSU officers. Property of unknown value in the institution and around has been vandalized. Apparently, some locals have turned against students following the destruction of property and stabbings have been reported. Police officers, however, brought the situation under control by 3 pm. JKUAT Closure Memo Following this unrest, the administration through aninternal ...

Toboa App is a social platform where anybody can share their stories, secrets, and confessions to a multitude of people who can relate and offer support and advice. Xtian Dela explains thatthe idea started when he asked members on his contact list to share some oftheir confessions on WhatsApp DM, which he would then anonymously post on hisstatus. Surprisingly, he got so many confessions and within 3 days, hisWhatsApp had already blown up with thousands of messages. Therefore, he decided tocreate a Telegram Channel and remarkably, within another 3 days, the telegram channel had already reached10000 members. Personally, I joined whenit had about 12000 subscribers and saw it grow to 25000 within days. Every day a topic ofdiscussion was selected and anybody who had a story would share anonymously. Xtianwould receive confessions in his inbox, go through them and post some in thechannel. The stories were insane. You would spend hours skimming through andwondering what the world has come to...

The kind of zeal and energy during campus years is quite unmatched. During these years, we tend to do the craziest of things under a similar driving force, “You only live once,” which is technically very true. Here, attending parties and events is a do or die situation, your choice. Have you ever attended an event or party which boggled and made you swear to never miss it? Well, here is a list of top Kenyan parties and events with brief descriptions. Go make memories with your groups of crazy friends. 1. Koroga Festival Rich African culturalheritage including music, art, food, and fashion is showcased through concerts.Not only does it help recognize our local talents, but also attractsinternational artists, giving them a platform to perform for their fans. Attendit, and get sophisticated. 2. Hype Festival Hype fest offers aplatform for new and upcoming Kenyan artists in addition to inviting some internationalartists to perform. If you want to witness your favorite artists kill the show...

The prevalence of exam cheating in Kenyan institutions of learning at all levels is evidently wide to an extent some key stakeholders would describe as uncontrollable. Over the past decade, many cases of exam irregularities have been reported in many institutions around the country and thousands of students have been confronted for the vice. However, these reported cases only account for less than 10 percent of all cases which shows just how big an issue it is. In a recent interview, Zipporah Kayuma, an international student in MKU expressed the shock she got when she came to pursue her higher education in Kenya. “In my country, cheating is very rare. Since childhood, we have been nurtured to do our exams credibly hence everybody studies knowing they will reap what they sow, but in Kenya, students steal exams like routine, and even more surprising, the invigilators care less.” Zipporah Abel Kengere Minister Academic Affairs MKUSA Society claims that education is the most important inst...