{"id":115159,"date":"2025-05-17T08:04:49","date_gmt":"2025-05-17T08:04:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/index.php\/2025\/05\/17\/joel-kibe-denies-role-in-uon-appointments-scandal-cites-tokyo-trip\/"},"modified":"2025-05-17T08:04:49","modified_gmt":"2025-05-17T08:04:49","slug":"joel-kibe-denies-role-in-uon-appointments-scandal-cites-tokyo-trip","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/joel-kibe-denies-role-in-uon-appointments-scandal-cites-tokyo-trip\/","title":{"rendered":"Joel Kibe denies role in UoN appointments scandal, cites Tokyo trip"},"content":{"rendered":"

NAIROBI, Kenya, May 17<\/em> \u2014 Former University of Nairobi (UoN) Council member Joel Kibe has denied any involvement in the controversial and allegedly fraudulent appointments at the university, stating he was out of the country on the date the offence is alleged to have occurred.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Through his legal team, Mwaniki Gachoka & Co. Advocates, Kibe has written to the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) asserting that he was in Japan on official business on April 19, 2024, the date listed in a charge sheet presented in court in his absence on Friday.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur client was not in Kenya on 19th April 2024. He was, at the time, on official business in Japan,\u201d Kibe\u2019s lawyers stated in a letter to EACC, attaching copies of his flight ticket, boarding pass, and passport immigration stamps to support his alibi.<\/p>\n

Kibe\u2019s lawyers, who also attached a Gazette Notice announcing revocation of Kibe\u2019s appointment, argue that this exculpatory evidence clearly proves he could not have participated in any unlawful activities in Kenya on that day and request that the EACC consider the documentation before proceeding with any charges.<\/p>\n

The development came hours after the dramatic arrest of UoN Council Chairperson Prof Amukowa Anangwe and several senior university officials as part of the EACC\u2019s expanding probe into irregular appointments at Kenya\u2019s oldest public university.<\/p>\n

Council Members Arraigned<\/h3>\n

Prof Anangwe was apprehended at Kisumu International Airport on Friday morning and later arraigned in court alongside fellow council members Dr Ahmed Sheikh Abdullahi, Carren Kerubo Omwenga, and Brian Ouma, the embattled Acting Chief Operations Officer. <\/p>\n

The four were released on Sh500,000 cash bail each, hours after their arrest.<\/p>\n

EACC alleges that Ouma was unlawfully appointed to the COO position despite lacking the requisite qualifications. <\/p>\n

Investigators claim the University Council conferred improper benefits on him by passing a resolution in his favor, leading to abuse of office charges being filed against five council members, including Joel Kibe and Dr Darius Mogaka Ogutu, who were directed to report to EACC headquarters for processing.<\/p>\n

Ouma faces additional charges of unlawfully receiving Sh32.4 million in salaries during his tenure as Acting COO.<\/p>\n

\u2018Unilateral\u2019 Appointments<\/h3>\n

The arrests follow weeks of turmoil at the university and mounting pressure from the Ministry of Education, which condemned a wave of what it termed \u201cirregular and unilateral appointments.\u201d<\/p>\n

Higher Education Principal Secretary Dr Beatrice Inyangala publicly faulted Prof Anangwe for allegedly bypassing legal procedures and failing to consult the Cabinet Secretary before appointing key administrators, including naming Prof Francis Mulaa as acting Vice-Chancellor\u2014moves the ministry said contravened the Universities Act, 2012.<\/p>\n

The controversy deepened after Kenya\u2019s Ambassador to Belgium, Prof Bitange Ndemo, declined his appointment as substantive Vice-Chancellor, citing procedural irregularities.<\/p>\n

Governance Crisis Deepens<\/h3>\n

Kibe\u2019s removal from the UoN Council earlier this year has now taken on fresh significance in light of the unfolding investigations. His legal team maintains that his absence from the country on the day in question should exonerate him from any wrongdoing related to the appointments.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur client is ready and willing to cooperate fully with any lawful investigative process,\u201d his lawyers affirmed.<\/p>\n

The EACC has yet to issue an official response to the letter or confirm whether the documentation provided will affect any pending decisions.<\/p>\n

As investigations continue into the governance crisis at UoN\u2014including additional allegations of embezzlement and irregular land leases\u2014Kibe\u2019s defense marks the first formal rebuttal from any of the implicated council members.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

NAIROBI, Kenya, May 17 \u2014 Former University of Nairobi (UoN) Council member Joel Kibe has denied any involvement in the controversial and allegedly fraudulent appointments at the university, stating he was out of the country on the date the offence is alleged to have occurred. Through his legal team, Mwaniki Gachoka & Co. Advocates, Kibe […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-115159","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","entry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115159","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=115159"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115159\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=115159"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=115159"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=115159"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}