Parents, students protest to demand refund in Sh1.1 b Finland scholarship saga

Parents and students who lost funds in the Finland and Canada scholarship saga demonstrate in Eldoret on July 28, 2026. [Wycliffe Kipsang, Standard]

Parents and students who lost their funds through the Sh1.1 billion Finland and Canada scholarship saga protested in Eldoret on Tuesday to demand a refund of their money.

The protest caught commuters and motorists unaware as the irate students and parents blocked the busy Eldoret-Nakuru highway. 

The protesters marched from Kerio Valley Development Authority (KVDA) plaza through the main Uganda Road to the County Government headquarters.

There was no one to address them at the county headquarters, prompting them to storm the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) regional offices.

Asenath Okerio who was to join Thompson University in Canada, said that her parents paid Sh772,000 to enable her to pursue studies abroad, but this has remained a pipe dream.

“I look like a beggar, yet my parents had a plan to change my life after giving out all the resources to secure my overseas education. I am appealing to the people concerned to refund the amount so that we can explore alternatives,” said Okerio.

Irene Angela who was also expected to join Finland Lohja campus, accused the Uasin Gishu county government of shattering her dream to study abroad after she lost Sh1.27 million through the Finland and Canada scholarship scandal.

Shadrack Juma, one of the affected parents, called on EACC to intervene in the matter, saying the county has done nothing since the issue came up in July last year.

“We have been coming here several times but nothing has been done to help us. Why have you not arrested the people concerned in this matter? This is purely corruption and we appeal to you to please sympathize with our children,” Juma said.

He paid Sh1,277,000 in 2022 after taking a bank loan, hoping that his daughter would go to Laurea University in Finland to study nursing.

EACC North Rift Regional Coordinator Kuntai Ole Tingisha who addressed the irate parents and students said that they were looking into the matter.

Tingisha urged parents and students to seek redress at the appellate court saying that the commission played its key role during the preliminary investigations over the alleged misappropriation of approximately Sh 1.1 billion meant for the overseas education programme.

“Thank you for coming here, you have all the rights to seek help from government enforcement authorities like EACC. We are here to work for you, otherwise my advice is that you take this matter to the Court of Appeal because it has already been settled in court,” he said.

The parents at the same time called on elders and church leaders to stop meddling in the matter.

On Monday, Uasin Gishu Governor Jonathan Bii broke his silence over the saga, insisting that the overseas education programme was not a county initiative.

However, Bii said the county had initiated a process to pursue individuals who benefitted from the funds raised by parents whose children did not travel to Finland and Canada for studies.

Uasin Gishu elders led by Major (Rtd) John Seii had urged victims of the overseas education scam to call off the demonstrations as they kick off a reconciliatory process and the use of traditional means to recover the lost money.

“It is important to clarify that the Overseas Education Programme was not a County Government programme. Furthermore, the funds contributed by parents were not deposited into any County Government account,” Governor Bii said in a statement.

Governor Bii said Uasin Gishu County Assembly had directed the executive to constitute an ad hoc committee to inquire into the scam which had been the subject of a fierce court battle in Nakuru for the last three years.

The County Chief said the ad hoc committee, which was chaired by former Uasin Gishu Deputy Governor John Barorot was expected to probe the scam before the matter moved to court.

He said the ad hoc committee had recommended that the issues raised by affected parents and students be subjected to further investigation by the relevant government agencies.

“In 2022, the County Assembly received a petition from affected parents whose children had been denied the opportunity to study in Finland. Following its deliberations, the Assembly directed my office to constitute an ad hoc committee to inquire into the matter,” said Bii.

The governor hinted at alternative dispute resolution as part of the process to recover money lost in the programme.

“Article 159(2)(c) of the Constitution of Kenya recognizes alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, including mediation, reconciliation and other community based processes,” he said.

“Guided by this constitutional provision, and by the County Governments Act, I am committed to pursuing every lawful avenue that promotes the public interest and helps affected families obtain justice and closure. I have therefore directed the County Legal Team to explore the possibility of resolving this matter through the Alternative Justice System (AJS),” he added.

Bii further said that the County Government would continue to support lawful efforts in pursuit of accountability, transparency and justice for affected parents and their children.

Speaking in Eldoret on Monday evening, Seii and a group of elders said elders will meet affected parents and leaders in their effort to seek justice through traditional means.

He promised that the reconciliatory mechanism will be concluded within two months.

“It is painful that parents and their children are crying after losing money. We call upon the affected parents and their children to remain calm and call off the demonstrations. We promise that alternative justice will yield fruits. We hope to have concluded talks within two months,” the retired military officer said.

Mandago and his co-accused were facing charges of conspiring to steal Sh1.1 billion from a Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) account in Eldoret registered under the Uasin Gishu Education Trust Fund, which was intended for overseas university fees for scholarship students.

According to information obtained by The Standard, the funds were collected from parents for the facilitation of Tertiary Education in Finland and Canada during the Financial Year 2021/2022.

Information in our possession indicates that the Uasin Gishu Education Trust Fund Account was opened in May 2021 and by December 2022 a total of Sh957,167,143 had been credited to the account by parents.

It also emerged that a total of Sh257,326,740 was debited from the Uasin Gishu Overseas Account to beneficiaries indicated as agents and or intermediaries for onward transmission to Universities in Finland and Canada

The governor also questioned what becomes of the students whose parents lost money, who should bear responsibility for managing the funds, and whether any refunds have been made.

However, while the statement seeks to project renewed commitment to justice, it has also reopened uncomfortable questions about the county administration's own conduct over the past three years.

For many parents who lost billions of shillings under the overseas education programme, the governor's appeal for mediation raises a fundamental question: Why did the county government wait until after the collapse of the criminal case to pursue justice?

The criminal proceedings lasted for more than three years, during which hundreds of affected parents repeatedly sought support from the county government.

Information obtained by The Standard shows that Bii had been listed as one of the prosecution witnesses.

However, despite several summonses and warrants requiring his attendance, he never testified before the court.

Instead, he was eventually dropped from the list of witnesses.

Legal observers say his testimony could have provided crucial insight into the county's handling of the matter after he assumed office in September 2022.

His failure to testify remains one of the questions raised by some of the affected families, particularly now that the governor is presenting himself as a champion of accountability.

Several parents have argued that the move delayed their pursuit of compensation and effectively stalled one of the few legal avenues available to recover their money.

In late 2022, Bii travelled to Canada, where the county government signed several Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs), including partnerships with Thompson Rivers University and institutions in Northern Ireland and Canada, aimed at facilitating education opportunities for Uasin Gishu youth.

At the time, the county described the agreements as the beginning of a new chapter that would send the first batch of students abroad.

It remains unclear how those agreements differed from the overseas education programme initiated under Mandago's tenure.

The former governor's programme had similarly relied on partnerships with foreign institutions and assurances that students would access education abroad after making substantial financial contributions.

Bii argues that he had directed the county legal team to explore resolution through the Alternative Justice System (AJS), citing Article 159 of the Constitution.

He said he had also engaged religious leaders, elders and the County Assembly to support mediation efforts.

Last week, Mandago was acquitted of charges linking him to an alleged conspiracy to misappropriate Sh1.1 billion meant for the county's overseas scholarship programme.

In a ruling delivered on Thursday, July 23, the High Court in Nakuru found that the prosecution had failed to prove its case against Mandago, clearing him of the conspiracy charges.

Mandago, who served as Uasin Gishu Governor when the scholarship programme was launched, had been charged alongside other county officials over allegations that funds meant to support students pursuing studies abroad were mismanaged.

According to the court, the evidence presented by the prosecution did not meet the required threshold for a conviction, effectively ending the case that had lasted over six years.

The scholarship programme was designed to support students from Uasin Gishu County pursuing higher education abroad, particularly in Finland and Canada.

To secure admission, beneficiaries were required to contribute up to Ksh1 million each into a designated trust account.

The programme came under scrutiny in September 2021 after parents and students raised concerns over a lack of communication, while some beneficiaries stranded in Finland reportedly faced eviction after failing to pay tuition fees and accommodation costs.