Kiama’s tenure as VC ceased with effect from September 27, 2024.
The University of Nairobi (UoN) Council has announced the termination of Professor Stephen Kiama as the Vice Chancellor of the country’s premier tertiary institution.
In a statement to the UoN community obtained by Viral Tea, the council’s chairman, Prof. Amukowa Anangwe revealed that Kiama’s tenure as VC ceased with effect from September 27, 2024.
“Reference is made to the communique issued by the Council to the university community on 2nd August 2024.
“The Council wishes to inform the University community that Prof. Stephen Gitahi Kiama’s services as an employee of the University of Nairobi were terminated effective 27th September 2024. Reasons for his termination were promptly communicated to him,” announced the council.
Signpost at the entrance of the University of Nairobi. /BUSINESS DAILY
Prof Anangwe however assured the university community that whenever called upon, the Council would rise to the occasion and discharge its mandate faithfully and within the beacons of law.
“The Council calls for individual and collective commitment to dedicated service in the pursuit of the university’s vision and mission to our society, our country Kenya and the world at large,” added the statement.
While the reasons for his ouster were not openly disclosed by the council, the ouster is the culmination of a row between the professor and the university. In August, the University Council suspended Kiama for three months, stating his failure to meet the requirements for a second term, which the council argued was not suitable for him to remain in office.
The Council went ahead and appointed Prof. Margaret Hutchinson as the acting vice-chancellor.
In April, Kiama dismissed a previous communication that directed him to go on leave, directing members of the university staff and students to ignore the directive, assuring that he was still in office.
This came after the UoN council sent him on compulsory leave on Friday, April 19 and appointed Prof. Ayub Njoroge Gitau as the acting Vice-Chancellor. News regarding the VC’s leave sent mixed reactions as well as raised concerns across sections of the university community.
In September 2023, the council gave Kiama the green light to proceed on six-month leave from August 1 pending the expiry of his contract, only for him to return to the university a month later.
Kiama assumed the position of vice-chancellor at the University of Nairobi on January 5, 2020, succeeding Peter Mbithi, who was placed on compulsory leave. He was appointed for a five-year term that was set to conclude in 2025, as indicated in a letter from the then Council Chair, Julia Ojiambo.
