• MCA allegedly presented a fake KCSE serial number; prosecution says exam council confirmed he didn't sit for exam
• He is said to have forged KCSE certificate to facilitate his enrolment at JKUAT for a Diploma in Governance and Leadership
Image: COURTESY
Kiambu MCA Robert Githongo was on Wednesday released on Sh800,000 bail in a case in which he is accused of presenting fake academic certificates.
Githongo, a pastor at the African Independent Pentecostal Church of Africa, is charged with deceiving the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission where he claimed to have a genuine diploma awarded by JKUAT in 2015.
In a different count, the MCA is accused of issuing a fake KCSE certificate to the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology purporting it to be genuine.
He is further accused of making a false statutory declaration in Nairobi on March 1, 2017.
Appearing before anti-corruption chief magistrate Lawrence Mugambi, the Kiamwangi ward rep pleaded not guilty to all the charges.
The Kiambu county MCA was arrested by EACC officials on Wednesday.
The anti-graft commission opened investigations into allegations that the suspect forged academic certificates to enrol at JKUAT for a Diploma in Governance and Leadership.
Prosecutor Vivian Kambaga said the offence of forgery was serious and urged the court to consider that while granting bail.
“The accused is an MCA and he can interfere with the witnesses if he is allowed to access his offices,” Kambaga said.
She added that many of the witnesses are his subordinates working at the county assembly of Kiambu.
"The court should issue bond terms that are commensurate with the offence because he has been receiving public from the public tax money having deceived them that he is qualified," she added.
Githongo, on the other hand, told the court that he had no office provided by the county government. Further, he said, he had not been informed who the witnesses were.
The prosecution said the national examinations council had verified that Githongo did not sit for the exams at Mirera Secondary School in 1997 as was alleged.
Reports indicated that he used the document to get admission into JKUAT from where he graduated in 2016.
But the MCA said, "I am innocent until proven guilty and there is no evidence that has been availed to me since I was arrested."
Despite the prosecution's application, Mugambi declined to bar the MCA from visiting his office because there was no formal application tabled before him.
“I have considered that the offence is serious and it involves the public and, therefore, the accused should deposit his passport in court,” Mugambi said.
Edited by R.Wamochie