Death and ruins in orgy of violence

By Peter Opiyo and Cyrus Ombati

A death. Injuries. Burnt lecture halls and unprecedented destruction of property marked the nightlong rioting at Kenyatta University in Nairobi.

The students — at both the main and the Ruiru campuses — simultaneously went on the rampage, only hours after the institution was opened following another strike last week, and destroyed a computer laboratory, vandalised most of the equipment before torching hostels.

One student who was shot in the chest succumbed to his injuries while being treated at Kenyatta National Hospital at 8 pm.

At the main campus, the imposing Nyayo Hostel and an ultra modern theatre hall were razed while the computer centre vandalised and machines stolen.

Several other buildings at the main campus had their windows shattered in the mayhem.

Another hostel nicknamed Chania was burnt down at the Ruiru campus.

Serious injuries

Five students are admitted with serious injuries while unconfirmed reports indicated that one student died in the skirmishes. Ninety other students were arrested.

The Thika OCPD Patrick Mwakio had earlier confirmed that one student had died in the riots early Monday morning.

However, he later said there were no deaths when we contacted him following an assertion by Police Commissioner Maj-Gen Hussein Ali that police did not use live bullets in containing the protests.

The university was closed indefinitely following the protests over a Sh1,000 levy imposed on each student for the damages caused in last week’s strike.

Motorists on Thika Road were caught unawares by the stone-throwing students at around 7 pm on Sunday.

They bore the brunt of the violence as vehicles were stoned, forcing many to seek alternative routes.

Separately, the suspended students moved to court to challenge the university’s action and seek their reinstatement.

Eighty-six more students from the institution were charged with burning the institution property during riots that led to its closure yesterday.

Forty-five of the students appeared before the Thika Principal Magistrate Mr Anthony Kaniaru where they denied the charges.

Two of the students are nursing bullet wounds sustained during the chaos, while another sustained burns on the hands. One of them is in critical condition at the Intensive Care Unit of Kenyatta National Hospital.

A third student broke her legs when she jumped from the first floor of her hostel room, to evade policemen who had gained entry into the halls of residence. An ultra-modern theatre, an old computer centre, student union’s offices, offices and two blocks of hostels were among the facilities destroyed in the unrest.

Several computers were vandalised and their vital components stolen while the windows of several other buildings were shattered.

The destroyed computer centre had more than 200 machines.

Police were immediately dispatched but by the time they arrived, they were greeted by the fiery flames from various buildings.

Fire fighters from the nearby Kahawa Army Barracks and Thika and Nairobi City councils arrived in time but they could not manage to contain the inferno.

And for the next almost six hours, the students engaged police in running battles saying they were opposed to the manner in which the administration was running the institution.

“Let them know we are not babies and we need to be consulted on some issues,” shouted one student as he hurled a stone at a glass window.

The students said they wanted the exams suspended until those who had not registered do so and those sent away following last week’s riots re-admitted.

They accused Vice Chancellor Olive Mugenda of insensitivity over their affairs citing a registration deadline that she put in place before the start of the examinations.

Clearing fees

The deadline for clearing fees was set for February 13, a month after the start of the semester. The institution opened on January 10 for the first semester.

There were claims of sexual harassment but Police Commissioner Maj-Gen Hussein Ali, who visited the institution to assess the damage, was quick to refute them.

Prof Mugenda said the Senate would meet and announce the way forward in a month’s time.

Ali, who had initially said the police did not fire a single bullet, later admitted that some of the officers who were sent to quell the violence had used live bullets and that investigations would get to the bottom of the matter.

“We do not know who between the APs, GSU and regular personnel used the bullets but we are investigating,” he said.

Mugenda, who addressed the Press in the company of Ali, said she was simply following the laid down rules and regulations.

“We have even been flexible by extending the deadline and none should say he or she rioted because of me. We will communicate to them on the way forward in a month’s time,” she said.

She said the institution is investigating claims that hired goons were also used in destroying and looting property there.

Appalled by the destruction, Ali said: “None would imagine people with such intellectual capacity would reason out the way they did. This is not acceptable at all.”

As the officials toured the destroyed facilities, dumbfounded subordinate staff watched from a distance.

“We have never witnessed such destruction of property,” said one of them.

Additional reporting by Felix Njenga and Wairimu Kamande

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