Machakos University Students Protest Over Delayed Helb Loan
Machakos University students on Thursday took to the street to protest the delayed Helb loan just a month after Multimedia University students protested over the same.
A source confirmed to PoliticalPulseChat that the students blocked roads in Machakos as they engaged law enforcement in running battles.
Ideally, university students are supposed to receive Helb funding at the beginning of the semester to cover their tuition fees and upkeep, which they say has not happened.
The loan is meant to cushion students from low-income households who are studying in public universities.
In photos and videos circulating on social media, the students lit bonfires along the road, paralyzing traffic.
They marched with placards and called for the Ministry of Education to intervene and release the funds.
Anti-riot officers, who arrived at the scene, lobbed teargas at the students who had gathered in crowds.
Shortly after, police backup arrived and patrolled around the streets to ensure the safety of the Machakos residents.
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At the time of publishing this article, the officers were still engaged in running battles with the students.
The University’s students association had previously sent an internal memo to all students informing them of the planned strike to present their petition to the Ministry of Education to release the funds.
“We are therefore calling upon all Machakos University Comrades to sacrifice your time between 8:00 am to 2:00 pm on November 2, 2023, to demonstrate our collective strength and determination to address this issue at hand,” read part of the memo.
The incident comes barely a month after Multimedia University students had protested over the delayed release of helb funds in early October.
The students lit bonfires and blocked Magadi Road, which is the main entry into Ongata Rongai Town in Kajiado County.
Following the incident, Helb disbursed loans to over 175,000 undergraduate students and over 70,000 TVET students.
Machakos University Students Protest Over Delayed Helb Loan
