• Court order has not been vacated or appealed.
• Parliament ruled KUCCPS process is illegal.
Image: /Magdaline Saya
The Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement's bid to take charge of KMTC admissions has triggered a major storm, with MPs stopping the process on account of illegality.
MPs on Thursday revoked the ongoing exercise being spearheaded by the agency, saying the process is in breach of a court order that stopped it from taking over the mandate.
A High Court in July ruled in favour of two students who had filed a suit to bar KUCCPS from carrying out admissions on behalf of the state corporation.
The order has not been vacated or appealed.
“When the court rules on a matter and you have not appealed or brought amendments to the law, then what you are doing is an illegality,” National Assembly Health Committee chairman Robert Pukose said.
The committee observed that the ongoing process is a breach of the law, demanding the admission function immediately reverted to the Kenya Medical Training College.
“The process conducted by KUCCPS is null and void. I have directed KMTC to seize the matter from KUCCPS,” Pukose said.
The Endebess MP also ruled that KUCCPS transfer all the application fee it received to the college as the process starts afresh.
The net effect of the development would mean long wait for students aiming to join the KMTC this year.
According to KUCCPS CEO Mercy Wahome, the service portal was opened on July 2023 and received applications up to August 4.
During the period, KUCCPS received 42,000 applications, with each applicant paying Sh2,000 for the process that would lead to placement to the 42 KMTC campuses spread across the country.
With KMTC's students capacity standing at 11,000, some 32,000 students were to miss chances.
From the application fee alone, KUCCPS received Sh84 million.
“The committee is of the decision that students who had already applied (through KUCCPS) is illegal, the process is flawed. KMTC should be able to re-advertise and admit students,” Pukose directed.
“KUCCPS should surrender the money to KMTC. The 42,000 applicants who had applied to KUCCPS should not be made to pay again.”
Health CS Susan Nakhumicha initially tried to defend the transfer of roles invoking an Executive Order allegedly issued to approve the transfer of function to KUCCPS.
In a stormy session on Thursday, the ministry could not produce an alleged Executive Order that transferred the role of admitting from KMTC Board lifting the lid on the conflicting mandate.
However, MPs directed that KMTC be allowed to continue admitting the students as the norm until the law is amended to transfer the mandate to KUCCPS.
“We want you to submit to the committee and amendments to the KMTC, meanwhile KMTC should start the process afresh,” Pukose said.
The KMTC Act, mandates the College Academic Board to select students for KMTC’s programmes.
The committee was having a session with Health CS, KUCCPS CEO Wahome and KMTC top management led by CEO to address among others, concerns raised regarding equitable placement of applicants across various regions in KMTC institutions.