Officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigation (DCI) and officials of the Commission for University Education (CUE) on Friday, February 28, raided Northwestern Christian University’s graduation ceremony in Mombasa, citing the university’s lack of accreditation.
In the raid, the commission canceled 100 fake degrees and arrested the university’s officials and students. However, the students were later released, with CUE officials urging Kenyans to be careful when choosing institutions of higher learning.
“I want to declare this a crime scene, and anybody in a gown should remain seated until we finish all our processes. Is that clear?” a DCI official stated.
The raid came after the university was listed as one of the universities that were operating without accreditation and issued a warning to cease operations in the country.
Speaking after the raid, CUE chair Prof. Chacha Nyaigotti-Chacha reiterated the Commission’s commitment to cracking down on illegal universities and colleges in the country.
“When we find you (universities and colleges) parading yourselves as legitimate institutions offering programs that give out master’s degrees and bachelor's degrees, then it is our duty to bring an end to this violation of the law,” Chacha stated.
“Today, we found this institution conducting a graduation ceremony, and many people were getting degree certificates, some even PhDs. We worked together with the relevant authorities, and we were able to arrest the founders of the institution,” he added.
The latest comes after the commission disclosed that the revocation of the university’s operating licence was announced in 2023 through a notice published in the local dailies; however, despite the notice, the institution went against the law and continued with its operations.
“It was made explicitly clear that the institution was not accredited to offer any university education in Kenya and that any purported credentials issued would not be recognized in Kenya,” the commission revealed.
Consequently, CUE launched investigations into the circumstances surrounding the purported award of degrees by the university.
The university also caught the attention of the Engineering Board of Kenya (EBK), who demanded that the learning institution immediately withdraw Kapseret Member of Parliament Oscar Sudi’s Honourary Doctorate degree.
The institution issued the honorary degree certificate with the 'Engineer' title on Saturday, December 21, 2024, during the university’s 17th graduation ceremony.
EBK disclosed that it issued the orders after it received numerous complaints from concerned members of the public regarding the misuse of the professional title "Engineer" in the honorary doctorate certificate.
