By KLRB Editorial on Thursday, 01 February 2024
Category: Kabarak Law Review Blog

Welcome to 2024, to Canaan, to the premier world

New Year's Address by Prof J Osogo Ambani, LLD, Dean, and Associate Professor of Public Law, Kabarak Law School

It is my brother and colleague Mr Elisha Ongoya's Facebook page that first broadcast the news (in March/April 2021) that I had joined Kabarak Law School (KLS) as Dean and Associate Professor of Public Law. The matter went viral when that combined with a tweet by my other brother, Cabinet Secretary, Hon Onesmus Kipchumba Murkomen. And then my alma mater, the Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria, touched its key board and the news of my posting was amplified to the region and beyond.

This news was greeted with excitement across my networks. The many congratulatory messages that nearly crushed my phone, the warm and genuine reception by students, faculty and staff at Kabarak, and the countless pledges of support, including by distinguished academics and other influential personalities, could humble even pride itself.

My mentor (Mr Kennedy Buhere of the Ministry of Education) immediately forwarded a book on university management. Prof Ambreena Manji, Dean of International for Africa at the School of Law and Politics, Cardiff University, took hold of my hand from Day 1. And firmly so. Prof Sylvia Kang'ara, founding Dean of Riara Law School, encouraged, guided and lived solidarity. A hard copy congratulatory note from our founding Dean, Prof PLO Lumumba, was reassuring. Action being the language of love for my mentor and my Dean at Strathmore Law School, Prof Luis Franceschi, he inspired and checked on me 'no sooner than' to ensure I had settled in peacefully.

Then there was the call to action. Our Vice Chancellor, Prof Henry Kiplangat, threw the first serious challenge at my desk when he tasked me to ensure KLS ranks among the top law schools in Africa. But he moderated the weight of this assignment through his promise to support this vision fully. Prof Willy Mutunga, Chief Justice of the Republic of Kenya Emeritus, ended his congratulatory message with a prophetic statement – 'you will be my Dean in your new station'. Ms Rahab Wakuraya, the Associate Dean of KLS, alerted me that the plane that is KLS had been taxiing for far too long, that it was ready for a steep takeoff.

The motivational messages above met the threshold for a jamboree! But the challenge to raise the bar, to found a premier law school, spared no energy for a celebration. It was time for work!

In March/April 2024, when I complete a term of three years, we will be launching a book on gender and agricultural governance in Kenya co-edited by myself and authored by our faculty and students. We will also be hosting the African Regional Round of the 22nd Edition of the John H Jackson World Trade Organisation Moot Court Competition. Even more significantly, we will be entering Canaan, which for us means the double blessing of the two new KLS chambers and the fresh values that we have agreed must accompany this historical migration.

Great scholars, only God could organise events with such serendipity; which is why I praise Him greatly. Indeed, between the emotional start I have described above and the anticipated cheerful end of a term, God has been faithful. His hand is visible in our many milestones. In the interest of time and space I mention only but a few and in a random manner.

From the time of my arrival, we debated and passed an ambitious strategic plan for the 2022 – 2026 season. Christened Our commitments, the Strategic Plan pitches our vision at a falsetto – '[t]o set a very high bar for excellence, ethics and virtue in legal education'. The mission for KLS is to impact the universe through excellent legal education, cutting-edge legal and interdisciplinary research, and devoted community service - all from ethical and biblical perspectives.

Our commitments has seven strategic pillars:

Pillar i. requires us to engage top-notch academics. Thus, in November 2021, and in time for the strategic season, Prof Mutunga joined our faculty as an Adjunct Professor of Public Law becoming the first Full Professor of Law at KLS and the first Chief Justice to join the academy in Kenya or perhaps anywhere in Africa.

A few months later, in January 2022, Prof Mutunga crowned his appointment by delivering an Inaugural Lecture under the title 'In search and defence of radical legal education: A personal footnote.' Prof Mutunga's Inaugural Lecture is historical in the sense that it was the first at Kabarak University and only the third by a law academic in Kenya.

Other new distinguished academics who now stride the hallowed KLS chambers include Ms Jean Okumu, Mr Humphrey Sipalla, Dr Henry Paul Gichana, Dr Juma Paul Ochieng, Dr Harrison Mbori Otieno, Ms Melissa Mungai, Prof Kiwinda Mbondenyi, Mr John Said Nyanje and Mr Wachira Maina. Additionally, the entry of eminent legal practitioners Mr Cyril Kubai, Mr Dennis Ngarichia, Mr Kelly Malenya, Hon Gordon Ogola (formerly Speaker, Migori County Assembly) and Hon Dominic Rono (formerly Speaker, Kericho County Assembly) has strengthened our traditional 'practice edge'.

Great teachers and poor students make a terrible match. Luckily for us, this has been eschewed. Throughout the season under review, we have continued to attract some of the most gifted students in the country and will soon take the region by storm. Our international students Kenaya Komba, Nabintu Laetitia, Christian Rugenge and Victoria Okeke have only pioneered a route many will soon walk.

Our students have continued to excel in various moot court competitions and debates,[i] and have proven to be capable of competing favorably with the very best the world has got to offer.

This intellectual edge is bound to widen after the launch of a new and revolutionary Bachelor of Laws (LLB) curriculum in September 2023. The new curriculum strengthens our governance niche by introducing courses such as Ethics and Anti-Corruption Law; reorganises the order of courses to afford learners three specialisations at third year - Governance Law, Corporate Governance Law and International Law; introduces courses that are more relevant to our immediate community like Agricultural Governance Law and Sports Law; pioneers the teaching of personal development for law students through the Personal and Social Skills for Lawyers course; empowers learners for the 21st Century through courses like Digital Literacy for Lawyers and Data Science for Lawyers; and entrenches innovative andragogical approaches such as clinicals and experiential learning, court monitoring, moot courts, the Socratic method, term papers, and open book examinations, among others.

As part of Pillar ii. we have organised world class conferences, webinars and lectures where serious ideas touching on topical legal subjects have been debated and disseminated.[ii] Through these important forums, we have had the privilege to host very influential personalities. These include: all the chief justices since the 2010 Constitution, that is, Prof Mutunga, Hon Dr David Kenani Maraga and Hon Martha Koome; the Attorney General of the Republic of Kenya Emeritus, Prof Githu Muigai; President William Ruto's Cabinet Advisor on Women Rights, Ms Harriet Chiggai; the Assistant Secretary General of the Commonwealth, Prof Luis Franceschi (thrice); Court of Appeal Justice, Grace Ngenye (twice); High Court judges, Teresia Matheka, Hedwig Ongudi, and Samuel Muhochi; distinguished advocates Ambrose Weda, Charles Kanjama, Daniel Ngumi, Ochieng Dudley, Julie Matheka, Ochiel Dudley, Christine Nkonge, and Ken Melli; and distinguished scholars, Dr Gautam Bhatia, Dr Victor Lando, Dr Dancun Okubasu, Dr Adem Abebe, Dr John Wamwara, Dr Duncan Ojwang, Dr Ken Mutuma, Dr Jane Wathuta, Prof Ambreena Manji, Prof Richard Albert, Prof Yaniv Roznai, Prof Migai Aketch, Prof Rosalind Dickson, Prof Ben Sihanya, and Prof Sylvie Kang'ara to mention but some.

We have also signed memoranda of understanding with many organisations. These include: Amnesty International; European Law Students Association; Hivos East Africa; International Commission of Jurists Kenya; Kenya National Commission on Human Rights; Konrad Adenuaer Stiftung; Save the Children; and Validity Foundation.

Also as part of commitment ii., our Vice-Chancellor established the Kabarak University Press (KUP) and graciously stationed it within KLS, under the leadership of Mr Sipalla, for incubation. Barely over two years later, KUP is transforming academic publishing in the region not just by the rate at which it is churning out knowledge but also by the originality, quality and rigour of its outputs. Already, KUP has published the following books and periodicals:

The first volume of Kabarak Law Review (KLR), which is edited by our undergraduate students, was published in December 2022. The second followed exactly a year later in December 2023. About 36 blogs later, KLR could boast of editing what is perhaps the most active students' blog in Africa.

Another milestone in the period under review was the establishment, in 2023, of the African Centre for Governance, Leadership and Ethics (ACGLE) within KLS and the appointment of Dr Gichana as its first head of department. ACGLE will anchor the study and post-graduate teaching of African governance, leadership and ethics later this year.

Our Vice-Chancellor also established the Centre for Legal Aid and Clinical Legal Education (CLACLE) and appointed Dr Paul Ochieng Juma as its chair. CLACLE promises to be the theatre for clinical legal education, and our formal conduit for community service initiatives like legal aid clinics, legal aid, and public interest litigation.

Even before CLACLE's establishment, a robust culture of community service through legal aid clinics and charity had taken root. For instance: -

As part of Pillar v., we have established an efficient and democratic administrative infrastructure comprising: monthly Executive Committee and School Board meetings,; regular Dean's Students' Forums; a functional and inspirational Law School WhatsApp Group (Canaan Bound); and the Students' Grievance Handling Procedure, which lays down the channels for seeking help, complete with an ombudsperson system.

On 15 December 2023, our Chancellor, Hon Dr Gideon Moi, crowned our profession by awarding the Chief Justice of the Republic of Kenya Emeritus, Hon Dr Maraga, the Degree of Honoris Causa Doctor of Laws in honour of his contribution to the learned fraternity.

Low moments

But we have had our low moments as well. On 1 August 2021, at the height of Covid 19 measures, and just when I was settling down to my new assignment as Dean, we lost our beloved student, Emmanuel Mutura Ndwiga, and his brother, Benson Njiiru Ndwiga, to what remains a sad, mad and bad case of police brutality. Obviously, the evil police officers were preoccupied with the individual and physical mortality of the young and promising scholars. Unbeknown to them, the collective efforts of the students' body and the never dying intellectual platform of which KLR is a part would immortalise the good brothers by continually revisiting the subject of policing.

Another low would come in October 2023, when we had to discontinue 164 of our students on academic grounds. Most of them had overstayed their welcome of eight years, and others ignored our progression guidelines. While we regret this loss, we have resolved to build a robust academic foundation upon these ruins.

Priorities for 2024

We shall continue on this promising trajectory in 2024. When God wills, my key priorities for this pivotal year shall be, to: -

Welcome to Canaan

Yes, in April 2024, we shall occupy the twin new chambers; what, for two years, we have called Canaan!

Great scholars, Canaan is both a physical place and a spiritual space. The physical place is a state-of-the-art facility comprising two magnificent auditoriums, two Supreme Court level moot courtrooms, stunning chambers for the Dean, research centres and visiting professors, and several ultra-modern classrooms; and an outdoor amphitheater to boot. It will be a sight to behold!

That excellence is meant to inspire us to aspire for such and greater levels; to foreshadow the places of our future. Oh yes, Canaan is a place of dreams; individual dreams for career prosperity, but also a corporate dream for premier status.

Canaan is also a spiritual space. For the uninitiated, a new land is an impetus for renewal. It is a space for revival where our core values must flourish. These values include; integrity, ethics, industry, excellence, teamwork, humility, service and responsibility.

As our savior Jesus would say, love is the one value that unifies them all. Love goes with integrity, with honesty. We work hard for the good of those we love. We do stuff for them excellently. We partner with them. We are humble where they are concerned. We serve them diligently. And we are responsible for them – their keeper. Love is the virtue for Canaan.

Welcome to Kabarak in 2024, to Canaan, to the premier world. May the good Lord bless you exceedingly abundantly!


[i] For instance: -

[ii] These include: -

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