
A peaceful protest by University of Nairobi medical students demanding delayed exam results rapidly escalated into chaos today, culminating in police firing teargas amidst a tense standoff that disrupted traffic and ignited widespread outrage.
The demonstration began orderly, with students gathering on University Way, brandishing placards and vuvuzelas. Their demands were clear: they have sat for April exams but continue to grapple with missing marks and delayed results, imperiling graduation—scheduled within weeks—and their academic futures.
Fumes of frustration thickened when students blocked the busy thoroughfare with stones and lit sticks, bringing traffic to a standstill. As the protest intensified, authorities deployed teargas to clear the crowd. Some students retaliated by hurling stones, prompting a fraught confrontation between them and law enforcement.
The UoN Medical School president voiced the group’s desperation: “We came to demonstrate peacefully, yet we’ve been met with riot squads instead. We sat our exams in April, yet no results. With graduation just weeks away, the uncertainty is unbearable.”
As the dust settles, calls are mounting for swift administrative action: timely result release, transparent communication, and safeguards against similar crises. For students teetering on the edge of academic collapse, the clock is ticking—and so too is the university’s reputation.