The findings of a regulatory audit pointing to weak oversight of management decisions at Kenya’s public universities are hardly surprising.
Until recently, appointments to university councils have followed the general trend in State agencies where loyalty to the ruling elite — not necessarily competence — is the chief consideration.
The selection of corporate executives or senior academics as chancellors is a fairly recent practice, the Head of State having served as the ceremonial head of all public universities before 2013.
In the absence of competent councils, critical decisions of vice-chancellors, the chief executives of these institutions, have not always been subjected to proper scrutiny.
The consequences of weak oversight, as the special audit by the Commission for University Education (CUE) found, have been dire.
For instance, the setting up of satellite campuses across the country without qualified faculty has raised concerns. The CUE audit should serve to remind the regulator as well as the public universities of the need to strengthen corporate governance at the institutions.
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