The student leadership across tertiary institutions in Kenya has been challenged to consider utilising peaceful conflict resolution mechanisms in addressing their grievances with the management of their institutions.
TVET national director in charge of quality assurance, Dr Meshack Opwora, regretted the worrying trend where violence and destruction threaten the smooth rollout of programs in certain tertiary institutions, despite dialogue and proper engagement with concerned entities not having been thoroughly utilised.
“The TVET sector is the only sector in our education that we don’t see unrest because they are very organised, they are innovators who can help people who are deaf or hard of hearing create solutions. They collaborate, talk and work together. That’s the longstanding culture that we would wish to continue in the sector,” he noted.
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He stated that if there are any issues across the institutes, then they must come together and maintain a culture of collaboration, participation, dialogue, and moving forward in the best interest of all the actors.
“I remember vividly when the RIAT institute had some concerns with the quick transfers of principals, and the students’ association was not impressed. And after a phone call with the student leaders, we resolved the entire issue, and they were satisfied. Congratulations to RIAT and other institutions that depend on sobriety and dialogue to solve the problems,” he stated.
He noted that with the modularised system of learning, students are assessed every three months and given microcredentials from CDAAC. This means that if an institution goes on strike, they’ll waste a lot of time, while others have transitioned.
The Nyanza region has been treated to news of student unrest at Kisumu National Polytechnic, which has been ongoing for weeks and has paralysed learning, prompting an indefinite shutdown due to security concerns.
The unrest led by the students’ council was necessitated by claims and allegations of corruption, mismanagement and hiked fees without consultations.
By Erick Nyayiera
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