Kimilili MP Didmus Barasa has responded to reports by Nation Media Group and The Standard Group concerning his academic qualifications, insisting that the media houses should correctly identify him as Didmus Wekesa Barasa, PhD, CBS.
Barasa said he holds a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Public Administration from Murang'a University of Technology, pushing back against descriptions that he had been awarded an honorary doctorate in Humane Letters.
“Nation Media Group and The Standard Group, kindly be gracious enough to get my name right: Didmus Wekesa Barasa, PhD, CBS,” Barasa said.
He clarified that his doctorate was not a Doctor of Philosophy in Humane Letters honoris causa, but a PhD in Public Administration that he said he earned after three and a half years of study.
“I do not hold a Doctor of Philosophy in Humane Letters honoris causa, but a Doctor of Philosophy in Public Administration that I earned after 3 and a half years from the Great Murang'a University of Technology,” he stated.
The MP further praised the institution, describing Murang'a University of Technology as “the fastest growing university in East of the Sahara, South of River Limpopo.”
Barasa's remarks come amid renewed scrutiny of his academic history after Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) said it could not find him in its student or alumni records and disputed the authenticity of an engineering degree certificate attributed to the institution.
Reports by Nation and The Standard have also highlighted differences between older and newer parliamentary records concerning Barasa's academic qualifications.
An earlier parliamentary profile listed him as having obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from JKUAT and a postgraduate qualification from the University of Queensland.
More recent parliamentary records list qualifications including a Diploma in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from the Kenya Power and Lighting Training School and degrees in Public Administration from Mount Kenya University.
The controversy has also extended to questions surrounding Barasa's doctoral studies at Murang'a University of Technology, with court proceedings involving questions about the academic qualifications presented for his admission.
Barasa has maintained that his academic credentials are legitimate and has previously pointed to his Public Administration qualifications as the basis for his progression to doctoral studies.
His latest statement focused on correcting how he is identified and clarifying that the doctorate he holds is an earned PhD in Public Administration rather than an honorary doctorate.