Nairobi: Ngatia knocked out over fake degree

• Apr 20, 2022

Nairobi: Ngatia knocked out over fake degree

By Correspondent

The Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Richard Ngatia was knocked out of the Nairobi gubernatorial race by Jubilee Party for presenting a fake degree.

Ngatia presented a fake degree from San Juan del la Cruz University in Costa Rica, Central America (attached).

It indicated Richard Ngatia Waweru studied Bachelor of Arts (Corporate Leadership and Governance).

But Jubilee Party knocked him out of the Nairobi governor's race after establishing it was fake.

Meanwhile, a State House meeting on Tuesday cleared the way for former Nairobi Deputy Governor Polycarp Igathe to be named Azimio-One Kenya Alliance candidate for the Nairobi governor’s seat.

According to sources privy to talks around the alliance’s ticket, the meeting at State House settled on Igathe to fly the Azimio ticket, with Westlands MP Tim Wanyonyi asked to deputise him.

One of the sources said the Equity Group Holdings Ltd chief commercial officer emerged as the compromise candidate as part of the Jubilee-ODM pact after Ngatia fell out of favour with the Jubilee Party top leadership.
“Igathe is even currently holding a meeting with his team at a Nairobi Hotel after the meeting,” said a source who spoke to Daily Nation on condition of anonymity as they are not authorised to speak to journalists.

However, the source said that Wanyonyi would not play second fiddle to another candidate.

“He says he is not backing down from his bid to be Nairobi’s fourth governor,” said another source.

 Executive Director of Raila Odinga's Azimio La Umoja campaign secretariat Raphael Tuju admitted to ongoing engagements to settle on the coalition’s Nairobi flag-bearer but said he was not directly involved.

However, on Igathe’s name popping up as an aspirant for the ticket, he said the ex-Nairobi DG is “a known entity in Nairobi politics and to hear his name is not something out of the ordinary”.

“I have heard his name as well, and he is not a stranger to Nairobi politics, as he was Mike Sonko’s deputy and resigned as a matter of principle, but I don’t know what was agreed upon as the discussions are still going on,” said Tuju.

Addressing the press at his campaign secretariat, Wanyonyi said he was still in the race, but his fate would be decided by the outcome of a boardroom deal set to be announced by tomorrow (Thursday).

Looking crestfallen, the Westlands MP stated that the decision of the coalition will either add weight to him being in the race, or subtract it.

Other contenders for the seat are Governor Ann Kananu and businesswoman Agnes Kagure.

On Wednesday morning, Wanyonyi held a breakfast meeting with Kagure, signalling a possible alliance.

Already, Deputy President William Ruto-led Kenya Kwanza Alliance (KKA) has settled on its line-up for top seats in Nairobi with Senator Johnson Sakaja set to fly the gubernatorial ticket.