HRM CHRONICLES
Awarded Academic Papers : What ’ s Your Proof ?
By Samson Osero
A recent Saturday ’ s cold weather this July dictated Angela , Daudi and myself to hold our monthly meeting on Zoom . Although the electoral clock was ticking loudly , we decided to keep partisan politics at bay .
However , I said : “ Let ’ s revisit the matter of academic papers , which had caused sleepless nights to some political candidates . It was either they had the paper or their goose was cooked .”
Angela , a seasoned HR professional , noted that I was putting the cart before the horses . She retorted : “ Lets first consider candidates of competitive electoral offices as job-seekers . Each vacant position they are vying for has expected roles and responsibilities ; required credentials and demonstrable competencies .”
Daudi , a political science lecturer , and I laughed at the idea of unemployed politicians fighting for available public positions . In the battles , incidents of presenting fake certificates were alleged . Some of the affected candidates dashed to the High Court seeking injunctions to enable them put their houses in order .
Electoral Qualifications
Unlike employment in a typical organization where HR conducts interviews , the electorate is part and parcel of the interview panel . On casting votes at a general election , citizens seal the fate of political candidates .
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Institutions of higher learning should establish and maintain Certificate Authentication Bureaus which the public can access on payment of a reasonable fee . Since nowadays people post their profiles on platforms like LinkedIn , one ’ s certificates are no longer a private matter .
Angela reminded us : “ The key role of a political office holder is to serve the public . The law provides for minimum qualifications for various elective positions .” Daudi interrupted rudely : “ Such qualifications may not be a key determinant of the performance of an elected politician . In the traditional African society , someone who led others did not possess any academic qualifications . Yet , he provided leadership that enabled the community to successfully address its challenges .”
I appreciated his argument but kept thinking about its viability in the twenty-first century . The Kenyan populace is proud of fairly high levels of literacy and uses capacities such as the internet , social media and artificial intelligence ( AI ). How can democracy accommodate an “ illiterate ” aspirant ?
As if Daudi was reading my mind , he said : “ Academic qualifications is only one strand among others in choosing political leaders . The electorate would also consider a candidate ’ s ethnicity or clan , observable character or socio-economic development records . The touted criteria is just a matter of perception . But for academic credentials , it is either one formally obtains them or not .”
To bring the discussion back on track , Angela said : “ At the workplace , a candidate ’ s credentials provide evidence of their knowledge , skills and competency for the vacant position . Hence , during the employment interview HR scrutinizes academic papers for authenticity .” Sometimes interview panels find candidates with certificates which are littered with noticeable differences in fonts ; misspelt words ; peculiar serial numbers and lack of institutional watermarks . A red flag is usually raised for a candidate who does not account for identified discrepancies on their documents .
Proof of Authenticity
David told us : “ Instead of putting the candidate to task , the interview panel should give suspected candidates leave to produce items like : letter of admission for course studied ; list of course subjects ; lecturers who taught the subjects ; semester transcripts received ; relevant graduation list and photos taken on graduation day .”
As Daudi was listing the many items , Angela and I broke into uncontrollable laughter . Holding my ribs , which were already aching , I queried : “ Something is not adding up . Can presenting a plethora of course-related items to a concerned authority confirm whether or not academic certificates are genuine ?”
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