A former Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) officer has been fined Ksh80,000 after being found guilty of using a forged university certificate to secure a promotion.
The former Assistant Elections Officer was convicted by the Milimani Anti-Corruption Court after the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) established that he had presented a fake academic certificate.
In a statement on Monday, September 21, EACC said the court found the former officer guilty of uttering a false document.
The judgment was delivered on September 17, 2026.
“In its judgment delivered on September 17 2026, the Milimani Anti-Corruption Court found the convict guilty of uttering a false document and fined him Ksh80,000, and in default, he is to serve eight months’ imprisonment,” EACC stated.
Fake degree used to secure promotion
Based on the court documents, the ex-officer from the IEBC had presented a fake Bachelor of Business Management (Finance and Banking) degree certificate.
The fake certificate had allegedly been issued by Moi University and had been produced as part of his application for promotion in the electoral commission.
The officer had been promoted from Grade 8 to Grade 7 prior to the investigation and his subsequent arrest and arraignment in court.
The EACC lauded the guilty verdict, stating that it was a lesson to all those using fake academic papers to acquire jobs or promotions.
The EACC has been dealing with several cases of fake academic certificates especially when used to secure jobs and promotions in public institutions.
Government steps up certificate verification
The case comes as government agencies intensify efforts to deal with the use of forged academic papers in public service.
The Public Service Commission (PSC), Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC) and the Ministry of Education are working on measures to make it easier to verify academic qualifications presented by job applicants.
The planned system will integrate academic credential authentication to allow qualifications to be checked before applicants are recruited into public service.
The move is aimed at strengthening the verification process and preventing people with fake academic credentials from securing public jobs or promotions.