Have noble hiring of university managers

Appointment of university administrators is increasingly getting messy due to intense campaigns and underhand deals. Which should not be the case. Universities are citadels of academic excellence and are expected to provide leadership in all respects, including how they recruit managers and staff.

Way back in 2004, the then-Narc administration set a good precedent when it introduced competitive selection of vice-chancellors and their deputies, shielding university administration from political and other extraneous interferences. And there was background to that: Under the Kanu regime that was ousted in 2002, top university appointments were made by then-President Daniel arap Moi and was purely based on political and ethnic considerations. The net result was politicisation, ethnicisation and degrading of university administration.

Unfortunately, that bad culture is coming back. Several universities do not have substantive VCs and DVCs due to wrangles over appointments.

Some have been without VCs for nearly two years, creating confusion in their management. And it is not just contestation over VC’s job but also lower-level positions too.

A case in point is Kibabii University, in Bungoma County, one of the youngest institutions of higher learning and which has an opportunity to do things differently. It is in the process of appointing a DVC but that has sparked intense lobbying, with politicians and the local community staking a claim to the position.

This has to stop. First, universities are not village or ethnic-based institutions that must only be served by individuals from the immediate localities. They are national institutions with capitation from the Exchequer and admit students from across the country.

Their management has to reflect the face of Kenya. Villagers and politicians have no business in their recruitment. They are not places for rewarding kinship or political ties.

Secondly, the law provides for competitive recruitment of top university managers. University councils are obligated to conduct an open and merit-based enlistment of top managers and other officials.

The mandate was shifted to the Public Service Commission, which advertises, conducts interviews and presents three names to the councils for appointment. The aim is to promote meritocracy and insulate the process from vested interests.

Reforming university education is high on the government’s agenda. Part of the reforms is to change governance, which starts with transparent and professional selection of managers.

The Education ministry should initiate the filling of all vacant VC and DVC positions in the universities and protect them from meddlers.