Former Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i on Wednesday, October 11, appeared before the Public Investment Committee in the National Assembly.
This followed a summon by the committee investigating the events that led to the closure of branches opened by Kenyan universities in Eastern Africa countries.
The MPs summoned Matiang’i to speak to, among others, allegations that he issued a directive for the closure of Kenyatta University’s Kigali Campus, a move that reportedly led to a Ksh600 million loss.
In his response, the former CS refuted the allegations, maintaining that the Ministry of Education did not issue such a directive in his tenure as Education CS.
According to him, the move to close the Kigali Campus was a culmination of policies adopted by the host government.
He explained that regulators in Rwanda made policy changes that forced KU to shut down its branches in the country.
In particular, Matiang’i noted that the Rwandese government amended the law and hence making it difficult for foreign universities to operate in the country.
“It was a government decision and not a personal decision. The campus was not closed on a motion of the government or the university management. They were closed by authorities and regulators in Rwanda,” Matiang’i explained.
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Moreover, the former CS was accused of having ordered closure of all campuses set outside Kenya in his tenure at the Ministry of Education.
His submissions came on the back of a protracted probing process with the committee keen on addressing key areas in the management of the University.
In a report, the Auditor General noted that the University had lost money in its botched move to set up campuses outside Kenya hence prompting investigations.
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In an earlier submission, the University’s management told the committee that the closure was driven by a directive from the state.
Subsequently, the Commitee summoned Matiang’i to address the allegations.
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However, there were expectations that the former CS would appear in public for the first time in months since his appearance at the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) in February.
After serving in government for almost a decade, Matiang’i found himself in unfamiliar grounds with the state moving to make him account for his actions in his various capacities.
However, the CS went low key amid reports that an MP brokered a deal to protect him from further summons.
