Residents of Kiharu in Murang'a County are in dispute with Murang'a University of Technology, accusing the institution of attempting to grab public land.
Locals claimed that they were shocked to find metal barriers blocking a main road, preventing vehicles from passing through the route connecting Murang'a town to Kangema. The barriers were erected by the university.
The residents have urged the government to intervene and remove the barriers blocking a section of the main road.
However, according to reports, the university claims that the road is on its land.
The barricade has caused inconvenience to local residents, who are now forced to take a longer route to reach Murang'a town.
One of the residents said that students pass through Kiharu Estate to access Murang'a town and it is shorter than another road from the town to the university main gate.
According to Murang'a Disaster Management Officer, Bilha Wanjiku, the barrier could cause delays in case of an emergency in nearby estates since fire engines and other emergency vehicles would have to drive through Murang’a town first to use an alternative route to access the area.
“The road provides easy access to surrounding areas, but with the barriers, we might not respond to distress calls in time. We are appealing to the government to intervene and have the road reopened,” she said.
One of university's founders and a former Deputy Principal deferred with the university as he maintained that the institution had no right to claim the road as private property, warning institution against dragging students into disputes.
“The field across the road was public but the University was allowed to use it. The University cannot claim ownership of either the field or the road,” he stated.
Another resident said the road known as the ‘old highway’ has existed for decades and is used to access Murang’a town from Kangema.
“I fail to understand why the University closed the road on both ends, and on what basis, because there has been no communication about it. This road has been in existence long before the University was established. It’s a public utility, yet the management now wants to treat it as private property,” he added.
