Thursday October 23, 2025 marks the 37th day since lecturers in public universities downed their tools and silence still hangs heavy over lecture halls across the country.

Students have been sent home, lecturers remain unpaid and frustrated, and the government seems unbothered. The strike, which began as a demand for better pay and working conditions, has now exposed a deeper wound. It genuinely looks like education is slowly losing its place among Kenya’s national priorities.

Across towns, thousands of university students are trying to fill the void. Some have taken up small jobs in construction sites, salons, and cybercafés just to stay productive. But for many others, the long days of idleness come with real risks. With no classes, no structure, and no clear end in sight, boredom is pushing some toward destructive habits and dangerous company.

Lecturers, too, are hurting. Many say they have gone months without pay, yet continue to be blamed for the ongoing stalemate. Their cry is simply calling for respect for their work and commitment to teaching. For them, the strike is not about greed it’s about dignity.

What’s more worrying is the government’s silence. Each passing day signals a lack of urgency as if the education of thousands of young Kenyans can wait. Yet, every day of inaction is another dream delayed, another graduation postponed, another nation weakened.

The cost of this strike goes beyond empty classrooms. It’s a slow erosion of hope. A generation that should be learning, innovating, and preparing to lead is being forced into survival mode. Kenya cannot speak of development while its brightest minds are locked out of learning.

It’s time for real dialogue not blame games, not press statements. The future of the country sits in lecture halls, not in political offices. If education continues to take a back seat, then Kenya’s future is not just on hold it’s in danger.