- The commission said it has identified six categories of academic fraud as the most prevalent in Kenya.
- They include altering high school grades on KCSE certificates to gain entry into the University and impersonating people named on certificates, including the dead.
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The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission has said it is currently investigating 153 cases related to fake academic certificates.
On Friday, the commission said other cases are at various stages of the criminal justice chain including the courts and before the Office of Director of Public Prosecution, ODPP.
The commission said it has identified six categories of academic fraud as the most prevalent in Kenya.
They include altering high school grades on KCSE certificates to gain entry into the University and impersonating people named on certificates, including the dead, to either apply for admission to learning institutions or seek employment.
The commission also listed the forgery of degree and diploma certificates to secure employment by persons who gain university admission but fail to complete their studies.
It said alteration of degree and diploma classification from “second-class honours lower division” to “first-class honours” is also rampant so is the fraudulent acquisition of academic certificates from universities by individuals who never set foot in any classroom or lecture hall.
The commission further said some individuals have managed to acquire genuine higher qualifications but their only undoing is that they used forged Diplomas and Degree certificates to gain enrollment.
To tame the menace of fake academic certificates in the country, the EACC called on employers to put in place proper checks and verification mechanisms to detect any forged certificates before recruiting staff.
“Academic Institutions should also strengthen internal controls to effectively tame admission of unqualified persons using fake qualifications from the lower learning institutions,” EACC said.
The commission encouraged members of the public to continue exposing individuals in possession of fake academic certificates or any learning institution suspected of facilitating the acquisition of fake certificates.
The commission noted that universities and other institutions of higher learning that facilitate the fraudulent acquisition of academic certificates are destroying Kenya’s education system and should stop such malpractices.
“On its part, EACC will continue to recommend prosecution of the culpable persons investigated as it recovers all salaries and benefits earned on the basis of forged academic certificates, which amounts to fraudulent acquisition of public property,” EACC said.