Daystar students protest and hold staff hostage
Athi River.
Daystar University staff members and lecturers were held hostage by demonstrating students on Friday night for more than seven hours.
The students were protesting against a new policy introduced that will require them to clear fees a semester ahead.
They also claimed the Vice Chancellor had threatened to retrench staff members and lecturers.
The protest started at around 3pm after classes with the students singing and marching peacefully to the main gate.
They locked it, baring anyone from entering or leaving the compound.
One of the student leaders who talked to NairobiNews said they resorted to the demo as previous attempts to get audience with the administration, particularly the VC, had failed.
“If they think they can do things against our will, they are mistaken. We will wait for them even if it means sacrificing our sleep this night,” said the student who sought anonymity because he said he feared to be victimised.
The stand-off lasted until about 9pm when the Vice Chancellor Dr Timothy Wachira turned up and after a lengthy talk, managed to convince the students to disperse.
He told them to allow him and his team look into their grievances.
Meanwhile, two people were on Sunday morning taken to Nairobi Railway Station Police station after they arrested by security guards on the Land Mawe-Muthurwa line.
One of them, a man in his early 20s was arrested for urinating in public, contrary to the city by-laws.
The other one who was slightly older was allegedly caught stealing railway metals which he had hidden inside a black polythene paper.
Muthurwa area has been a crime-prone in the recent past in spite of the presence of a police post nearby.
Faith Nyamai and Abdi Dika, NN