A senior Nairobi University lecturer has moved to court seeking to stop his dismissal on allegations that he failed to teach some courses.
In an application already certified urgent, Professor Joseph Migai Akech wants a Conservatory Order to be issued suspending the contemplated dismissal from service contained in the letter dated April 14, 2023
Akech states that by letter dated April 14 addressed to him, the University's Acting Registrar Administration informed him that the University was contemplating dismissing him from service without adhering to the provisions of the disciplinary process in its Human Resource Policies and Procedures Manual.
"The contemplated dismissal from service is exceedingly precipitate, hasty, petty, malicious, capricious, draconian, and discriminatory," court documents read.
He adds that he is an employee of the University of Nairobi and was appointed on promotion to the position of Associate Professor in the Department of Commercial Law, College of Humanities and Social Sciences with effect from February 1, 2011.
The professor said by a memo dated March 9, 2023, the Dean Faculty of Law, University of Nairobi alleged that he had not taken up teaching of GPR 406 Competition Law 6/163.
(Regular and Modular 2 Day/Evening) and GPR 6123 Comparative Regional Integration Law LLM classes for the semester that commenced on February 20, 2023, and required him to commence teaching the units with immediate effect, failure to which further action will be taken.
He said as at March 9, 2023, the registration thresholds of thirty (30) students for the teaching of a course had not been achieved in the portal, and therefore he could not commence teaching of the two courses. He logged into the portal on March 10, 2023, and confirmed from the portal that no students had registered for the two courses.
"On March 10, 2023, without waiting for me to respond to her letter of March 9, and contrary to the University's Human Resource Policies and Procedures Manual 2020, the Dean Faculty of Law hastily issued a Staff Movement Advice," he said.
By this action, he said the Dean wrongfully initiated Disciplinary action against him, without affording him an opportunity to be heard, he adds.
He claims that on two occasions, in 2019 and 2020, the University excluded him from the examination of two PhD students in respect of which he was the lead supervisor, without affording him any information or explanation.
He also questioned the abuse of power and disrespect by the University and demanded that it sanctions the individuals responsible for the abuse of power and disrespect.
"To date, and for more than two years and counting, the University has refused and/or neglected to give me a proper explanation for this abuse of power and disrespect, or more importantly sanction the individuals responsible," the professor said in court documents.
Justice Anna Ngibuini Mwaure certified the matter urgent and ordered the response to be filed within seven days.