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Civil servants face jail term for forged certificates


Two government officials have been found guilty of forging academic documents in order to be employed and promoted at a government institution.

As a result, Pauline Anyango Otieno and Lillian Akoth Achieng, both of whom are attached to the Rural Electrification and Renewable Corporation (Rerec) have been given an option of refunding all salaries and allowances earned during their stint at the government agency or risk seven years in jail.

A statement by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) confirms the duo forged education certificates from Mount Kenya University (MKU) and Kenya Institute of Management (KIM).

“”Ms Otieno is expected to pay Sh228,698 or be jailed for two years and six months while Ms Ochieng is expected to pay Sh271,901 or be jailed for three years and six months,” EACC said in a statement.

According to EACC, the two are staring at a number of criminal charges which including forgery, providing false information to a public entity, uttering a false document, and fraudulent acquisition of public property being the cumulative salary earned on forged certificates.

Before the duo was promoted into the procurement department, they had worked with the government parastatal as casual employees for eight years.

The statement revealed that in 2018, they went ahead and handed over the fake academic certificates and were formally employed as Supplies Assistants.

They then served for two months before investigations to ascertain whether their academic documents were genuine started.

According to the Kenya National Qualification Authority (KNQA) over 30 percent of civil servants in Kenya have fake academic documents.