The High Court has declined to stop USIU-Africa’s September 26 graduation ceremony after Deputy Inspector General of Police Gilbert Masengeli moved to court seeking orders over his exclusion from the list of graduates.
Lady Justice Patricia Mande dismissed Masengeli’s application for conservatory orders stopping the graduation, ruling that such an order would adversely affect other students who are not parties to the case.
Masengeli had alternatively asked the court to compel the university to include his name in the September 26 graduation list. However, the court also declined that request, finding that Masengeli had not demonstrated that USIU-Africa or his supervisor had specifically promised that he would graduate with the September cohort.
The judge said she had considered emails presented by Masengeli in support of his case but found no specific commitment that he would be included in the forthcoming graduation. “Being that the first relief sought adversely affects other students not party to the suit, the prayer for conservatory orders stopping the graduation scheduled for the 26th of September 2026 is hereby declined,” the court ruled.
On Masengeli’s alternative request to be included in the graduation list, the court found that no specific promise had been established. “Ultimately, the application dated 8th September is dismissed, costs thereof to abide the outcome of the main petition,” Justice Mande ruled.
Masengeli, through senior counsel Cecil Miller and lawyer Danstan Omari, had argued that he had complied with the requirements communicated to him and should therefore have been cleared to graduate. The dispute stems from Masengeli’s PhD programme in International Relations, which he enrolled for in September 2021.
According to his petition, he completed his coursework and examinations before proceeding to the dissertation stage. He defended his dissertation proposal in December 2025, obtained the required approvals and later submitted his dissertation for examination.
His lawyers maintained that the dispute was not about the academic merits of his dissertation but rather the administrative process followed by the university in excluding him from the graduation list.
USIU-Africa opposed the application, arguing that Masengeli had not demonstrated that he had satisfied all the mandatory requirements for graduation, including making the necessary application to graduate.
The university maintained that it was willing to support Masengeli in completing the process once any outstanding requirements were fulfilled, but argued that he could not be included in the September cohort without meeting the programme’s conditions.
Despite dismissing the application, the court moved to fast-track the hearing of Masengeli’s main petition. USIU-Africa was given seven days to file and serve a supplementary replying affidavit, while Masengeli was granted five days to file a further affidavit and written submissions. The university will thereafter have seven days to file its written submissions, with Masengeli allowed three days after service to file supplementary submissions.
The case will return to court on October 21, 2026, to confirm compliance and for further directions.
