Staff
and students at Kenya Wildlife Service Training Institute are up in arms with
the long-serving principal, Prof George Otiang’a-Owiti and now want him not
only exit but be investigated by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission for
corrupt activities which may soon bring down one of the most reputed
tourism-institutions in East and Central Africa.
Calling
themselves “Orphans of KWSTI”, some of the staff and students who volunteered
to talk to Weekly Citizen, confided that
while they look forward to the principal leaving on his own volition, they
strongly appeal to the government anti-corruption body to immediately launch
investigations into the principal alleged frivolous activities that have made
him untouchable and an institution unto himself.
As
a proof that all is not well at KWSTI, they said that a few weeks ago, leaflets
were dropped at the offices of Naivasha-based institute that warned the
principal of dire consequences should he ignore the growing impatience by staff
and students who want him to leave sooner than later. The leaflets claimed that
for more than the 15 years he has remained at the helm, he has not paid any
dividends and therefore, he should leave.
Multiple
sources revealed that lots of unpalatable accusations are levelled against the
man and they include what they described as unequal treatment of staff and
rampant ‘divide and rule’ tactics entrenched for the sole purpose of
intimidating staff. They gave an example where he allegedly appointed an
assistant lecturer to head sections and units at the institute leaving out
existing lecturers. He is accused of not displaying skills of a team leader and
instead creating two centres of power, one of loyalists who double up as
informers and the other of the so-called rebels whom he disdains and label them
‘politicians’.
They
claim that he has tendency of dictatorship and is used to dishing out warning
letters and charge sheets and even apply physical harassment. At one time, the
principal is alleged to have physically assaulted a tourism officer whom he
later transferred to another station. Members of staff accuse him of allegedly
making inappropriate advances towards female rangers as any denial to his
advances would be at their own peril.
According
to sources at both Naivasha and KWSTI headquarters in Nairobi, the Kenya
Wildlife Service management under director-general William Kiprono may have
blundered for not taming Otiang’a-Owiti, hence allowing him the wide leverage
of coming up with new designs which are likely to hurt its appendage KWSTI.
They point to the fact that KWS should not have given in to the dictates and
whims of Otiang’a-Owiti, particularly when he recently disagreed with his
immediate deputy on matters of principle, Prof Fredrick Kasili, now operates
from KWS headquarters as an assistant director.
Weekly Citizen was unable to get comment from Kasili as all the time he
reportedly was busy or attending a seminar. But the principal was adamant when
reached on phone and declined to comment.
Trouble
for Kasili, a scientist and scholar from Masinde Muliro University of Science
and Technology department of Biology, started in 2009 after taking up the plum
job at KWSTI and with support of scholars at KWST, initiated radical reforms
which were aimed at enabling the institution make a major leap to international
standards.
His first step, and, acting within the docket
assigned to him by KWSTI management, was to recommend the shelving of plans to
have University of Nairobi, where Otiang’a-Owiti teaches on part-time basis,
take over courses at KWSTI and probably at a later date convert it into its
constituent college. But during a meeting when the matter would have been
finalised, Kasili who was attending the meeting for the first time is reported
to have argued that the move was improper at that stage as this would have
deprived KWSTI of its sobriety and academic independence that was so crucial to
a unique institution such as KWSTI. It is reported this did not go down well
with the principal who felt an earlier decision he had nurtured was being
unfairly challenged.
Another
crucial decision that pitted Kasili against the principal, sources say, was a
proposal he sold to his academic colleagues as well as KWS management, that of
introducing of new courses as part of ongoing curriculum review process and as
he went a step further when he initiated the practice where students at KWSTI
would for the first time access past examination papers to aid them before
sitting their examinations. It is reported that during an academic meeting, Kasili
made a recommendation which was accepted that students should only be allowed
to graduate after completing the entire curriculum and also submitting a
research project, something that was never adhered to in the past.
But what might have broken the camel’s back
according to an impeccable source was Kasili’s recommendation during an
academic meeting that the Kenya Institute of Education should, as a matter of
course, be brought on board whenever the curriculum review process was being
developed. It is understood the principal could not stomach any more of the
so-called radical reforms and consequently had him moved to KWS headquarters
where he is allegedly languishing. The funniest thing is that in Kasili’s
absence, the principal brought in a non-academic in the name of Peter Leitoro,
a career security officer, and it is understood that no sooner did Leitoro land
at the station than he put in a request
to be allowed to continue with his studies and he thereafter left.
Staff morale is said to be at its lowest ebb
due to alleged demoralisation and de-motivation. The institute has been without
a deputy principal for more than 14 months now from the time the holder of
office was sent packing. A former student who preferred anonymity alleged that
the principal lacks professional integrity and narrated how he goes even to the
extent of demanding class notes from students and uses them for plagiarism
purposes.
He
alleged that the principal has the audacity to use information gleaned from
experts elsewhere and armed with this vital information will present
himself, at one time as wildlife
management expert, or climate change expert, wetlands expert, tourism expert
etc. He is said to loathe intellectual challenge and this may explain why he is
the only doctor of philosophy degree holder at the institution after sending
packing at least four young PhD holders.
Other
accusations against the principal include his disregard for KWS rules of staff
engagement concerning temporary recruitment. The sources cited a practice where
engagement of temporary staff is shrouded in mystery because of nepotism,
favouritism and tribalism. Signing of contract is done at the end and not
beginning of contract period like it is in other KWS stations. The contracts
are on a monthly basis contrary to KWS standard of three months. He is accused
of making decisions that have portrayed KWS in unfavourable light.
An
example is the dismissal of KWSTI lecturer who has since taken KWS to court.
For the period he has been principal he has not constructed a single extra
classroom and for this reason, students are required to pay a fee of over
Sh75,000 per semester of six months to learn in a tent. Staff claims they have
never noticed him proceed for leave but has always stayed around where he acts
as a clerk, signing for tissue paper or biro pens to be issued from the store
for distribution to members of staff. He has standing orders that all payslips
must be brought to him before being released to respective individual
employees.
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