Finland And Canada Scholarship Scandal Victims Ask Charlene Ruto for Help With Fees

by Ken Muthomi on Sunday, 11 May 2025 - 1:52 pm

A file photo of Charlene Ruto at a past event

File

Parents and youths in Uasin Gishu County have appealed for Charlene Ruto's help in raising funds to help victims of the Finland and Canada scholarship scandal get back to school.

Addressing the press on Sunday, May 11, the frustrated parents and youths invited the president's daughter to a fundraising event that has been slated for June 4, 2025. The groups are seeking to raise Ksh57 million for the victims of the scandal.

The parents have said that the long wait to get justice has prompted them to shift to other means as they wait for further court directives. The parents have urged other leaders and founders across the country to step in and support the parents to take their children back to school.

"We now have a date and we have invited visitors, some of whom have already pledged to attend and support us to help the youths. We also want to invite leaders and other founders who have foundations to help the youth, especially Cherlene Ruto, who we would like to be present during the event," one parent stated.

Former Uasin Gishu Governor Jackson Mandago Flags Off Students Selected Tampere University in Finland on Monday, September 6, 2021.

Photo

Jackson Mandago

"All we want is just a harambee, and we do not want to interfere with anything that is going on in the courts. The venue for the harambee will be at the sports club," he added

Furthermore, the parents have said that they will issue a paybill which Kenyans, including those in the diaspora, can use to contribute during the Harambee.

"I know it looks embarrassing for us parents to come out and urge Kenyans to contribute and children who fell victim to the Uasin Gishu Government, but we would like people to help us," one parent stated.

"For the past three years, we have waited for results, but nothing is coming out. Let it be known that it is not that we are not interested in the outcome; we just decided to do something as we wait for the outcome, and politics should not be infused in this kind of arrangement," another parent stated.

The scholarship scandal left more than 300 students stranded after their parents lost approximately Ksh749 million in what was promised to be a lucrative educational scholarship in two foreign countries.

Under this scheme, the Uasin Gishu County government, under the former Governor Jackson Mandago, was to act as guarantors to students in an arrangement with foreign universities and a local company, whereby families paid into a trust fund account.

The scandal was exposed in September 2021 when a group of Kenyan students enrolled in universities in Finland since September 2021 faced expulsion from campuses and subsequent deportation.

Earlier this year, the parents urged Chief Justice Martha Koome to take charge of their case and ensure that they are refunded the money they had paid for the programme.