More than 225 students at Mount Kenya University have received a major reprieve after the High Court overturned a directive issued by Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale seeking to discontinue the university’s Bachelor of Science in Oral Health programme.
In a landmark judgment delivered by Justice William Musyoka at the Milimani High Court, the court ruled that Duale acted outside his legal mandate when he attempted to order the discontinuation of the academic programme. The ruling effectively quashed the directive and reaffirmed the powers of the Commission for University Education (CUE) as the body legally mandated to accredit and regulate university programmes in Kenya.
The dispute arose after a February 3, 2026 letter from the Ministry of Health directed Mount Kenya University to discontinue the oral health degree programme. The ministry had argued that the course was not aligned with the country’s oral health needs and that there was no clearly established service delivery gap justifying its continuation.
However, the court found that the Health Ministry had no legal authority to make such a decision. Justice Musyoka ruled that the Universities Act clearly grants the Commission for University Education exclusive powers to approve, accredit and regulate academic programmes offered by universities. The judge stated that the Health Cabinet Secretary had no mandate under the law to order the discontinuation of a university degree programme. (The Standard)
The case had been filed by the Oral Health Association of Kenya, which challenged the ministry’s directive and argued that it threatened the future of hundreds of students already enrolled in the programme. The association maintained that the move violated the students’ constitutional right to education and had been made without proper consultation, stakeholder engagement or public participation. (The Standard)
In his judgment, Justice Musyoka also rejected the Ministry of Health’s argument that the letter merely advised the university to discontinue the programme rather than ordering it to do so. The judge observed that the wording of the communication effectively amounted to a directive because it required the university to prepare a transition plan for affected students within 21 days. According to the court, that requirement demonstrated that an implementation process had already been initiated. (The Standard)
The judge further criticized the ministry for bypassing the Ministry of Education and directly engaging the university on matters relating to academic programmes. He described such conduct as improper, unreasonable and amounting to an overreach of statutory authority. The court held that any communication concerning university programmes should be handled through the appropriate legal and institutional channels. (The Standard)
The ruling now secures the future of more than 225 students who had faced uncertainty following the ministry’s attempt to shut down the programme. It also reinforces the independence of universities and the legal authority of the Commission for University Education in regulating higher education institutions across the country. (The Standard)
The decision is likely to spark broader debate about the limits of ministerial powers and the extent to which government officials can interfere with university academic programmes without following the legal framework established under Kenyan law. For Mount Kenya University and its students, however, the judgment represents a significant victory after months of uncertainty surrounding the future of the oral health degree course. (The Standard)
