Nairobi Senator, Johnson Sakaja, who is seeking to succeed Anne Kananu as the city county governor, is on the hot seat trying to prove the validity of his academic qualifications.
In a span of one week, the politician, who claims he graduated from Team University in Uganda, has been hit with at least four petitions with the University of Nairobi (UoN) indicating that he is yet to graduate.
In a tussle with the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), Sakaja has also refused to table proof that he paid school fees to Team University in Uganda, arguing that the petition was malicious and aimed at tainting his name.
The storyline mimics a different tussle involving the Nairobi Senator three years ago that saw former Othaya Member of Parliament, Mary Wambui, lose her government post for lack of proper academic qualifications.
In 2019, the then Labour Cabinet Secretary, Ukur Yatani, appointed Wambui as the Chairperson of the National Employment Authority (NEA) and gazetted her name.
Sakaja, who was the chairperson of the Kenya Young Parliamentarians Association, however, instituted legal action against the appointment arguing that the former lawmaker did not possess a degree.
At the time, the Senator was invested in the organisation's leadership since NEA's founding was as a result of a Bill he had tabled in Parliament while serving as an MP.
“I have further instructed my lawyers as well as those of the Kenya Young Parliamentarians Association to file a petition this (Thursday) morning seeking to quash this appointment.
"The respondents of this suit are the Cabinet Secretary of Labour, the Attorney General and (Ms Wambui),” Sakaja told the press in October 2019.
Immediately, Wambui's appointment was suspended by the Employment Court until the petition was heard and determined.
In January 2020, the same court revoked the former lawmaker's appointment on the basis that she did not meet the qualifications an occupant of the office is expected to have.
The court further indicated that Wambui's appointment was against the law and irregularly conducted.
