The Uganda National Council of Higher Education says it is being frustrated by the tendency of some private universities to seek remedy from the courts rather than engage with the regulator in the interests of preserving quality. The National Council of Higher Education, or NCHE, Executive Director Professor John Opuda-Asibo told University World News that some private universities seek to use "power plays", delaying tactics and tend to "politicise" matters instead of holding talks directly with the regulator to rectify faults. He said with increased engagement between NCHE and universities, it would be possible to adhere to the rules agreed in order to maintain academic quality as well as separate the interests of management from the interests of private owners. A recent example of institutions turning to the courts is that of Busoga University, a private institution founded by the Church of Uganda under the Busoga Diocese in eastern Uganda. Fraudulent graduations In December the NCHE revoked the provisional education licence held by Busoga University. Last month, the latter approached the Constitutional Court seeking orders to reverse the revocation. The NCHE clamped down on the university after investigations into fraudulent graduations. According to media reports, the university fraudulently graduated 1,000 students after only five months of study. Some of these were Nigerians, while the majority were South Sudanese government officials and army generals. It was claimed that some of the students did not meet entry requirements and were admitted under unclear circumstances and that some were enrolled in unaccredited courses. The students, eager to keep their jobs backed by academic qualifications, allegedly each paid US$1,000 dollars to get their degrees after five months, instead of paying the usual US$300 per semester. The students were transferred from Star University College in Juba, South Sudan, which is affiliated to Busoga University. Another 70 students from Nigeria who were stud