Kimilili Member of Parliament (MP) Didmus Barasa is among the graduands graduating today with a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) from the Murang’a University of Technology.
The legislator is graduating with a PhD in Public Administration during the institution’s 10th Graduation Ceremony.
The title of his thesis is; ‘County Governments’ Branding Strategies and Service Delivery Satisfaction among Small and Medium Enterprises: A Case of Bungoma County, Kenya’, with his supervisors being Dr. Nancy Githaiga and Dr. Alice Omariba.
Throughout his tenure as Kimilili MP, Barasa has heavily prioritised education, with his administration focused on learning institution’s infrastructural upgrades, and bursaries to the needy students in his constituency.
The second-term MP, who is eyeing the Bungoma Governor’s seat, is pledging to mould his county administration — if elected in 2027 — to alleviate parents from the school fees burden.
But his graduation today is not with some controversy.
“I heard someone say that I didn’t go to school. That I stole someone’s certificate…I’m the most learned MP in Bungoma County. I have two undergraduate degrees and two Masters. I completed my PhD and I will graduate with a doctorate next month,” Barasa said in June 16, 2026, while sharing a letter from Murang’a University of Technology confirming he had fulfilled the requirements for the award of the PhD.
But the Consumers Federation of Kenya (COFEK) questioned Barasa’s achievement, with its Secretary General Stephen Mutoro arguing that the MP’s undergraduate education could not be verified, thus he could not have progressed to pursue a doctorate.
“This is a fake and financially transmitted degree. Council for University Education (CUE) should reprimand Muranga University for this shameful development. How does someone with no known education graduate with a PhD from a public university? The DCI should probe this asap,” Mutoro retorted.
Controversy
In 2024, Barasa, alongside fellow MPs John Waluke and Oscar Sudi, were awarded honorary doctorates by the Northwestern Christian University.
CUE would later declare the honorary doctorate degrees as fake, launching investigations into the operations of the institution.
At the time, CUE maintained that Northwestern Christian University was not accredited to offer education in Kenya.
