Nineteen Employees in Migori County Resign Due to Falsified Academic Certificates

Nineteen employees of Migori County Government, out of a total of 93 found with fake academic certificates, have chosen to resign from their positions. According to County Secretary Dr. Oscar Olima, these employees opted to leave rather than face potential actions from the county administration and other relevant authorities.

Meanwhile, another 25 employees among the 93 have written to the county public service board, seeking an opportunity to provide their side of the story regarding their alleged fake primary and secondary certificates. The board has granted them a chance to defend themselves before any further actions are taken.

Dr. Olima emphasized that the process is not intended as a witch hunt but is based on findings from an audit report conducted by the Human Resource Audit Institute in 2023. Additionally, a staff headcount report by the county government aimed to ensure accountability further informed these actions.

The fake certificates in question were verified by the Kenya National Examination Council (KNEC) during a review of academic documents for over 2,700 county employees. Subsequently, those found with fraudulent credentials have been removed from the county payroll.

Instances of county government employees across different counties obtaining positions with falsified certificates have been reported. For example, Machakos County Secretary Dr. Muya Ndambuki confirmed that 121 out of 5,018 workers were discovered to possess fake certificates.

In a similar move, Nyamira County Governor Amos Nyaribo recently removed 79 employees from the payroll due to the discovery of forged academic and professional certificates.