Court reinstates Prof. Paul Wainaina as Kenyatta University VC

Embattled Kenyatta University Vice Chancellor Prof. Paul Wainaina is back at the helm of the institution after the Employment and Labour Relations Court on Wednesday ordered his reinstatement as the institution’s top executive.

Prof. Wainaina, who has been on compulsory leave since April 2024, made his second return to the university as the bona fide holder of the office in the ongoing leadership tussle at the premier institution.

Wainaina had moved to court in January this year to protest the university council’s decision to extend the compulsory leave he had been sent on by the Head of Public Service beyond the January 30, 2025, date.

He got a nod from the court to serve the institution until the end of his term, which will lapse in January 2026.

The orders have put on ice a process that had been started by the university council, chaired by Dr. Ben Chumo, to recruit a new Vice Chancellor.

They will also shield the professor from dismissal as a lecturer at the institution upon the expiry of his tenure, as he will not have attained 75 years of age — the mandatory retirement age for professors.

Prof. Wainaina's troubles began in August 2022, after he refused to cede 410 acres of university land to the government for the construction of an infectious disease unit under the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Prof. Waceke Wanjohi has been leading the university in an acting capacity.