Attorney General, Prof Githu Muigai, has criticized the parallel degree programme in Kenya, stating it is a means for public universities to take money from parents.
Muigai made these remarks following the Council of Legal Education's decision to ban the University of Nairobi, Mombasa Campus, and Moi University from teaching law due to their employment of unqualified lecturers.
According to Muigai, the Council of Legal Education made a prudent decision, as the parallel degree module has resulted in the production of underqualified lawyers and prosecutors lacking sufficient knowledge of the law.
Muigai, a former law lecturer at the University of Nairobi, reflected on the past, recalling the 1970s, 80s, and 90s when Kenya produced some of the world's best lawyers. However, he believes the current state of affairs is alarming, with universities now graduating what he terms 'law zombies'.
Muigai attributes this decline to the introduction of the parallel degree module, which he claims has led to inadequate monitoring of programmes. As a result, a single lecturer may be responsible for teaching multiple fields, including labour, family, and criminal law, often disregarding the knowledge beneficial to students.
'It is absurd to teach labour, family and criminal law in total disregard of knowledge beneficial to the learners,' Muigai said.
