Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has claimed to know the people who issue fake academic certificates at River Road and some of the senior government officials who have benefitted from the illegal trade.
Gachagua, who spoke on Wednesday during the third National Wage Bill Conference at the Bomas of Kenya, divulged that some cartels in the business of issuing fake academic documents had approached him as a potential client.
He said the unnamed individuals revealed to him that they had been of service to many government officials who needed the fake papers to secure employment in public service on a whim.
These officials, the DP noted, are very well known to his boss, President William Ruto, and he is willing to expose them to him.
“Many people in the government, Governors, heads of department, even some who are sitting here with you, most of them their papers ziko na dosari,” he told the President.
“These people of River Road have been looking for me saying why are you, the deputy president, complaining? Tumesaidia wengi, tumesaidia fulani, fulani na fulani…I will give you the list which I was given of the people who have been helped.”
While insisting that he had always turned down the offers, Gachagua however cited his current educational background, reiterating that he feels lonely as most fellow senior government officials including President Ruto have more than one degree and higher education qualifications.
Nonetheless, he reaffirmed that he is content with his level of education, and that’s why he was adamant about taking the shortcut.
“When I have been complaining that I am feeling lonely at the top because my boss has three degrees, Controller of State House also three, and I have one,” Gachagua noted.
“As for me, I don’t care much about papers, because I don’t want to go to River Road; I am satisfied with the little I have.”
The DP thus expressed his commitment to the fight against fake academic certificates, urging his boss to step up and make hard decisions to root out all culprits in the public sector.
According to the DP, the number of people with forged documents in government goes to thousands and if weeded out, may save the country billions amid the ballooning wage bill debate.
“This issue of fake certificates, I think it is a quick win for us; if we make a decision to get rid of all the fellows and characters with fake certificates, probably we could knock 10,000 people from the wage bill and recover a billion or two,” he noted.
“In this matter of fake certificates, make hard decisions which will be beneficial to this country and it will form part of your legacy.”
Gachagua at the same time recalled the 2022 presidential race where President Ruto was selecting a running mate and it came down to himself and Interior Cabinet Secretary Prof. Kithure Kindiki as the last two candidates.
He joked how some people were advising him to forge even a single Master’s degrees to match up to his rival at the time, Prof. Kindiki, who many people had purported to be the favourite candidate due to his education qualification.
Gachagua lightly said he turned a deaf ear to the requests and instead, during his interview, assured President Ruto of his commitment to help him in moving the country forward if picked despite his academic status.
“As you were looking for a running mate and it was me and Prof Kindiki who were on the final shortlist, and my supporters were feeling probably I could be disadvantaged because Kindiki was at the top…A lot of my supporters were calling me telling me tunaeza panga haraka haraka ata kama ni ka Masters utafutiwe ndio ufike pale,” Gachagua explained.
“When you called me to the interview and asked me about my education qualification, I said I had one degree and you asked ata Master’s hauna? I said just accept me the way I am and I will struggle in the future.”
