Engineering Board Orders Withdrawal of Oscar Sudi’s Honorary Doctorate Degree

The Engineering Board of Kenya (EBK) has directed Northwestern Christian University-Kenya to immediately recall Kapseret Member of Parliament Oscar Sudi’s Honourary Doctorate Degree.

The institution issued the honorary degree certificate with the ‘Engineer’ title on Saturday, December 21, during the university’s 17th graduation ceremony.

Sudi graced the university’s graduation ceremony at the Eldoret National Polytechnic, where he was conferred an Honorary Doctorate Degree in Leadership, Administration and Management.

EBK in a press statement on Monday, December 23, announced that it had advised the university to recall the honorary degree certificate, remove the title “Eng.” from the document and issue a corrected version.

EBK disclosed that it issued the directive after it received numerous complaints from concerned members of the public regarding the misuse of the professional title “Engineer” in the honorary doctorate certificate.

According to the board, the inclusion of the title “Eng.” in such a context was unauthorized and constituted a breach of Sections 26(3) and 47(2) of the Engineers Act, 2011. 

The Engineers Act 2011 provides guidelines that prohibit the use of professional engineering titles by unregistered individuals and prescribe penalties for such violations.

“Under Sections 26 (1) and (2) of the Engineers Act, 2011, the use of the style and title ‘Eng.’ is reserved for Professional and Consulting Engineers who are registered by the Board,” the EBK noted in its statement.

“Unauthorised use of this title undermines the integrity of the engineering profession and is a punishable offence under the Kenyan Constitution.”

The move comes days after Engineer Shammah Kiteme, the President of the Institution of Engineers of Kenya (IEK), criticised the lawmaker’s use of the title in connection with his honorary degree.

Taking to his X account, Kiteme cautioned Sudi against using the title ‘Engineer’ when he lacked the academic qualifications required for an engineer, adding that the title is protected by law.

“Please note that the prefix ‘Eng.’ before anyone’s name is protected by law under the Engineers Act, 2011. It takes at least eight years of hard work to earn it. Oscar Sudi, please stop this disrespectful use of a title you have not earned,” Kiteme said.