Deputy Inspector General of Police Gilbert Masengeli has dragged the United States International University-Africa (USIU-Africa) to court, seeking an urgent injunction to halt the institution’s upcoming graduation ceremony unless he is allowed to participate.

Through a high-profile legal team led by advocate Cecil Miller alongside Danstan Omari, Masengeli argued before Justice Patricia Nyaundi that the matter demands immediate judicial intervention.

The court was informed that the university holds only one graduation ceremony per year, which is currently scheduled to take place in roughly ten days.

Miller urged the court to issue interim conservatory orders barring the ceremony from proceeding or, in the alternative, enforce an expedited hearing schedule to resolve the underlying dispute before the event takes place.

USIU-Africa, represented by attorney Chege Njoroge, strongly opposed the application. The university cautioned that granting Masengeli’s request would unfairly disrupt the milestone event for the entire graduating class over a single individual’s dispute.

Furthermore, the institution asserted that Masengeli was excluded from the roster because he failed to meet the required academic criteria. According to Njoroge, the senior police officer has simply not cleared the necessary academic requirements to qualify for graduation.

Noting that the institution filed its response within two days of being served, USIU-Africa urged the judge to dismiss the application and allow the scheduled event to proceed without court interference.

The court is set to hear oral arguments from both legal teams at 11am, where the judge will determine whether to grant the temporary freeze or set fast-tracked timelines for the petition.