This archive report was first published on 1 August 2019.
On August 1, 2019, the High Court in Nakuru made a landmark ruling in favor of Simon Okwaro Habu, a student whose graduation had been delayed for more than four years due to missing marks.
Justice Rachael Ng'etich ordered Egerton University to pay Sh250,000 as compensation for the damages caused to Mr. Habu, who had completed a Bachelor of Science degree in Agricultural Education and Extension programme.
The court also directed the university to ensure Mr. Habu graduates during the next graduation ceremony, declaring him eligible for graduation after completing his degree.
Mr. Habu had moved to court in November 2018, accusing the university of refusing to let him graduate over missing grades and failing to clear fee arrears.
Through his lawyer, Antoinette Ogange, Mr. Habu claimed he had been admitted to the university in 2010 to study the degree course, which he cleared in 2014. However, his application for graduation was declined after the university claimed he had missing grades in his provisional transcript and also had not paid Sh3,360 fees arrears.
Despite following up the matter with his lecturers, who submitted the marks and cleared the arrears in 2015, Mr. Habu's name was again omitted on the graduation list in 2016.
Justice Ng'etich noted that the delay in Mr. Habu's graduation had subjected him to mental torture and hardship, and that the issue of missing marks was not his fault.
“It is no doubt that the petitioner has been inconvenienced by the delayed graduation, there is no doubt that he may have lost employment opportunities and the delay has subjected him to mental torture and hardship,” ruled Justice Ng'etich.
