The High Court has ordered Maseno University to pay a former student Sh800,000 in damages for violating his constitutional rights after the handling of his academic records prevented him from graduating.
Justice Gregory Mutai, sitting at the Milimani High Court in Nairobi, ruled that the university violated David Ayieko Ougo's rights to education and fair administrative action by allegedly deleting his academic records. Ougo has been unable to obtain his degree since December 2022.
In a judgment delivered on Thursday, October 15, 2026, the judge awarded Ougo Sh800,000 in general damages for violations of Article 43 of the Constitution, which protects the right to education, and Article 47, which protects the right to fair administrative action. The award will attract interest at court rates from the date of judgment until payment in full.
The court noted that the case involved a second established violation of a similar nature, following an earlier judgment in Petition E242 of 2023 involving Ougo, the Regional Institute of Business Management and four others.
Beyond compensation, Justice Mutai directed the university to carry out a fresh review of Ougo's examination results within 60 days, subject to constitutional safeguards and the Fair Administrative Action Act.
The university must formally notify Ougo of its concerns about the validity of his results and give him the investigation report dated October 6, 2023, the relevant mark sheet and any other evidence it intends to rely on. Ougo must be given at least 14 days to respond in writing and present supporting documents. The university must also give him an oral hearing and consider relevant academic records, including examination scripts and papers held by its examinations office.
At the end of the review, the university must issue a written decision identifying the examination units whose results have been verified and explaining its findings. The decision must be served on Ougo within 60 days of the judgment.
If the review confirms the validity of his results and establishes that he has no outstanding academic units, the university must issue him with an academic transcript and a letter of completion within 14 days of the decision.
The court also ruled that his name must be included in the university's next graduation list.
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