Deputy Inspector General of Police Gilbert Masengeli has moved to the High Court seeking intervention in a dispute with United States International University-Africa (USIU-Africa) over the processing of his doctoral studies. Masengeli wants the court to compel the university to release his dissertation examination results and complete the remaining academic processes so that his name can be included in the final list of graduates for the September graduation ceremony.
Through his lawyer, Cecil Miller, the Deputy Inspector General argues that delays by the university could prevent him from graduating despite having completed the required stages of his doctoral programme. According to court documents, Masengeli is pursuing a PhD in International Relations at USIU-Africa, having enrolled in September 2021.
Masengeli Seeks Clarity on Dissertation
In his petition, Masengeli says he has progressed through several stages of the programme but remains uncertain about the outcome of his dissertation examination and whether there are any outstanding requirements. He states that he defended his dissertation proposal in December last year before making amendments requested by the university. He later obtained approval from the Institutional Review Board and proceeded with his research.
Masengeli says he submitted his first dissertation draft on June 11, 2026, and subsequently made additional changes following feedback from his supervisors. By August 31, he says, both the internal and external examiners had submitted their reports to the university. However, Masengeli claims that he was not informed of the examination outcome or given a clear explanation of the remaining steps needed to complete his studies.
University Responds to Masengeli’s Request
The Deputy Inspector General says he wrote to USIU-Africa on August 25 seeking clarification on the status of his academic progress. The university responded on September 3, informing him that there were mandatory requirements and pending steps that needed to be addressed. His case was also referred to the Associate Dean of the School of Graduate Studies.
Masengeli, however, argues that the response failed to identify the specific outstanding requirements or disclose the outcome of his dissertation examination. He maintains that the uncertainty has affected his academic progression, particularly with the university’s graduation ceremony approaching.
Masengeli Clarifies What He Wants From Court
The senior police officer has told the court that he is not asking it to determine the quality of his research or award him a doctoral degree. Instead, his petition focuses on how USIU-Africa has handled the administrative and examination stages of his doctoral programme. He is seeking orders to protect his place in the September graduation cycle as the court considers the dispute.
Court Declares Case Urgent
The application was presented before Justice David Mburu on September 9. The court certified the matter as urgent and allowed it to be heard during the court recess. Justice Mburu directed Masengeli to serve USIU-Africa with the application, petition and related directions by the close of business on the same day, with proof of service to be filed thereafter. The university was given three days from the date of service to respond to the petition.
