Kenyan politicians with questionable academic papers
It’s that crazy political season in Kenya where politicians are struggling to prove their academic qualifications.
And therein lies the problem, because politicians tend to struggle to convince the public their academic certificates are legit.
Here are the prominent cases.
1. Cleophas Malala – The Kakamega Senator who is gunning for the gubernatorial position in the same county has been accused of having fake academic papers. Specifically, members of the public are contesting both his University degree and Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) papers. The controversial politician recently came out to set the record straight.
“Those who cherish propaganda, feel ashamed. Attached are true copies of my academic accolades,” he tweeted. The documents include both a degree certificate from the United States International University (USIU) and his KCSE papers.
2. Linturi Mithika – The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) flagged the Meru Senator as having integrity issues in a list it presented to IEBC in June 2017. The politician passes himself as a Bachelor of Commerce graduate from the University of Nairobi, yet in a sworn affidavit, an investigator with EACC claimed he not only never registered as a student for the course but was also not among those who graduated in 2001.
Linturi was also deregistered by the University of Nairobi following fake academic papers in 2014.
3. Ali Hassan Joho – The Kenya National Examination Council (KNEC) said the certificate showing the Mombasa governor attained a C+ in 1992 was fake amidst claims he gained entry at the University of Nairobi, and dropped studies, and subsequently transferred to Kampala International University using the forged results.
4. Ferdinand Waititu – The former Kiambu governor’s academic qualifications were flagged by William Kabogo, a political competitor. Kabogo claimed Waititu had a brother had graduated from Panjab University in India and not him.
Kabogo further claims Waititu changed his name in 2013 to acquire all academic papers needed to vie for gubernatorial seat. “Waititu adjusted his name from Ferdinand Ndung’u Waititu to Ferdinand Clifford Ndung’u Waititu,” Kabogo claimed.
5. Johnson Sakaja – The Nairobi senator degree papers have consistently been questioned amid allegations he did not complete his Actuarial Science degree.
However, he maintains that he completed his studies at the University of Nairobi in 2003 and indeed graduated.