The scandal surrounding Johnson Sakaja’s degree could harm William Ruto, the Kenya Kwanza alliance’s presidential candidate.
Nairobi County is the wealthiest of the 47 counties, according to statistics, and every presidential candidate wishes to gain control of the capital through a Governor appointed by his party.
Johnson Sakaja has been chosen as the Kenya Kwanza alliance’s governor candidate for the top city seat.
However, allegations that the Senator, a close supporter of the Deputy President, used forged academic documents to obtain clearance from the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), could keep him out of the governorship contest.
A petition has been lodged with the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) requesting that the Senator be disqualified from running for governor.
Dennis Gakuu Wahome, a Nairobi voter, wants the Senator prohibited from running for governor since he lacks the required degree for a gubernatorial candidate.
Wahome said that the Senator stated on the nomination Jubilee form in 2017 that he graduated from the University of Nairobi, according to a case filed with the IEBC Disputes Resolutions Committee.
In his statement, Wahome stated, “The respondent has proven fraud and forgeries that have the potential to degrade public confidence in and diminish the integrity of qualifications in Uganda and Kenyan degrees both regionally and globally.”
Sakaja was cleared by the IEBC on Monday last week after he provided papers from Team University, a Ugandan institution, indicating that he graduated in 2016.
However, recent research suggests that the Senator’s name was omitted from a graduation booklet for that year.
To add insult to injury, Sakaja stated in 2020 that he has never studied outside of Japan.
If the IEBC Dispute Resolutions Committee rules in favor of the petitioner, DP Ruto will be without a gubernatorial candidate in Nairobi.
Sakaja is now in a fight with Polycarp Igathe, a candidate for the Azimio la Umoja-One Kenya coalition party.
