Deputy Inspector General of Police Gilbert Masengeli has failed to stop the September 26 USIU-Africa graduation after the High Court declined his request to have the ceremony suspended pending the determination of his case.
Justice Patricia Mande dismissed the application on Wednesday, ruling that stopping the graduation would affect students who are not involved in Masengeli’s dispute with the university.
"Being that the first relief sought adversely affects other students not party to the suit, the prayer for conservatory orders stopping the graduation scheduled for the 26th of September 2026 is hereby declined," the judge ruled.
Masengeli had also asked the court to order USIU-Africa to add his name to the list of students scheduled to graduate, but the judge declined that request as well.
The court focused on whether Masengeli had shown that he had a legitimate expectation of graduating with the cohort due to complete their studies on September 26.
Justice Mande found that the material placed before her, including emails attached to the application, did not show that the university had made a specific commitment that Masengeli would graduate during the ceremony.
"Upon consideration of the Application and the emails forming part of the supporting documents, there is no establishment of a specific promise to the Petitioner (Masengeli) that he was to graduate in the forthcoming graduation, scheduled for 26th September 2026," she observed.
According to the judge, such an expectation can only arise from a promise or an established practice by a public authority where that authority has the power to fulfil it.
The case followed Masengeli’s complaint over his exclusion from this year’s graduation list despite having pursued a PhD in International Relations at USIU-Africa.
Court documents showed that he enrolled for the doctoral programme in September 2021 before completing his coursework and examinations and advancing to the dissertation stage.
Masengeli said he defended his dissertation proposal in December 2025 and secured the required approvals before submitting the dissertation for examination.
Through his lawyers Cecil Miller and Danstan Omari, the DIG maintained that he had completed the requirements that had been communicated to him but was left out of the graduation list.
His legal team told the court that the dispute was not about the academic merits of his dissertation but rather the administrative steps taken by the university in handling his graduation.
Miller said Masengeli made inquiries after noticing that his name was absent from the list but did not receive a satisfactory explanation. He subsequently issued a formal demand to the university.
USIU-Africa challenged the application and warned that suspending the graduation would affect the other students scheduled to graduate on September 26.
The university’s lawyer also argued that Masengeli had not established that he had fulfilled every mandatory graduation requirement and raised the issue of whether he had made the required application to graduate.
The institution said it was still prepared to help Masengeli complete the process if he met any requirements that remained outstanding.
After the court rejected the applications, the parties agreed to have the main petition handled on a fast-track basis.
The case will come before the court on October 21, 2026, when the parties are expected to confirm compliance and receive directions on the hearing of the petition.