Ex-City Hall employee fined Sh5m for using forged degree certificate

Ex-city hall employee charged with degree forgery.[File, Standard]

A former City Hall employee has been sentenced to four years in jail or a fine of Sh5.04 million for using a forged University of Nairobi degree certificate to secure a job and siphon millions of shillings in public funds for seven years.

Okandah William John, who served as a Revenue Collection Assistant at the Nairobi City Water and Sewerage Company (NCWSC), was convicted and sentenced by Milimani Anti-Corruption Court Magistrate Celesa Okore after finding him guilty of three counts of fraudulent acquisition of public property, uttering a false document and deceiving a principal.

"The prosecution has proved its case beyond a reasonable doubt against the accused person in three counts, and he is hereby convicted in accordance with Section 215 of the Criminal Procedure Code," Magistrate Okere ruled.

She noted that evidence tendered in court by EACC witnesses established that Okandah forged a Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting Option) degree certificate purportedly issued by the UoN and used it to secure employment at NCWSC on August 3, 2016, where he drew a monthly salary. The former employee remained on the public payroll until November 2023, earning salaries amounting to Sh4,749,597 during the period.

The case emerged after NCWSC embarked on a verification exercise of academic certificates submitted by its employees.

The company forwarded the documents to various institutions, including the University of Nairobi, for authentication.

The university's Senior Quality Assurance Officer, Dr Michael Mwareri Wangai, testified that a search of university records revealed that Okandah had never enrolled for the degree programme indicated in the certificate. “He did not apply to be admitted at the UON for any course whatsoever, and that Okandah's name did not appear in the institution's student management system, its graduation booklet or its addendum.”

The witness further stated that the degree certificate claimed it had been issued during a congregation held on December 4, 1998, yet the university conducted only one graduation ceremony that year on November 30.

NCWSC Human Resource Manager Titus Kibet Tuitoek testified that of 162 degree certificates the company forwarded to UoN for verification, only three were forged, Okandah's among them.

HR Officer Miriam Wairimu Macharia testified as an eyewitness that she personally received the degree certificate from Okandah at recruitment and that he signed a register confirming submission of all academic documents.

Forensic document examiner Stephen Yego further confirmed Okandah filled and signed the personal information form himself.

The court found that Okandah knowingly presented false academic credentials to secure employment and continued benefiting from the position for years. "The accused knew the document was false but still submitted it to make the institution regard him as more qualified personnel,” the magistrate observed.

However, the court acquitted him on the separate charge of forgery, finding that prosecutors had failed to prove that he personally forged the certificate.

Okore underscored the importance of integrity in public service, warning that dishonesty undermines public institutions and wastes public resources. “Integrity is paramount in saving judicial time and public resources. It involves adherence to moral and ethical principles, which fosters honesty, transparency and accountability,” she said.

He has 14 days to appeal the sentence.