Desperate Wamukota ‘deploys’ Cofek to block CEO Masters degree job requirement

Here is the uncomfortable truth that Antony Wamukota does not want Kenyans to know: He is using the Consumer Federation of Kenya Cofek) as his personal shield because his CV cannot stand next to those of his rivals.

Not even for five minutes.

The race for the Ketraco chief executive’s seat has descended into a farce after it emerged that Wamukota – the man secretly pulling Cofek’s court strings – is the only top contender without a master’s degree.

While three other candidates brandish postgraduate qualifications from reputable universities, Wamukota’s academic armour has a gaping hole. His bachelor’s degree, whose authenticity has been questioned internally for years, is all he has.

And he knows it is not enough.

So in a move that has left industry insiders gasping, the Consumer Federation of Kenya rushed to court to block the entire recruitment, arguing that a master’s degree requirement is “illegal.”

But sources confirm that the real client behind the court papers is not the consumer lobby. It is Wamukota himself.

Why is Wamukota using Cofek? The answer is brutal and simple: He is the least qualified applicant.

“He is using Cofek because he cannot win in a fair fight,” said a senior Ketraco board member who spoke to this publication on condition of anonymity. “Let us be very clear. Every other serious candidate has a master’s degree. Some have two. Wamukota has nothing beyond a questionable first degree. He is the least educated, the least qualified person in that race. And instead of accepting reality, he has hired a lobby group to try and change the rules. That is not leadership. That is desperation in a court suit.”

Another source within the State Corporations Advisory Committee was even blunter: “Wamukota knows that if the interviews happen tomorrow, he will be ranked dead last. His CV is thin. His baggage is heavy. His degree is a joke. So he has chosen to burn the house down rather than be evicted politely. Cofek is his hired sledgehammer – and the target is merit itself.”

The strategy is transparent. By arguing that a master’s degree is not a legal requirement, Wamukota hopes to drag the bar down to his level. But insiders say this exposes his greatest insecurity.

“He is terrified of being compared,” said a former Ketraco human resources officer. “He knows that next to candidates with real postgraduate training, real research, real credentials, he looks like a village technician. So he is trying to eliminate the very standard that exposes him. That is the act of a man who has already admitted defeat to himself.”

The irony is not lost on energy sector veterans. In November 2023, Wamukota was suspended alongside 74 other officials following EACC recommendations over the botched 400KV Loiyangalani Power Project.

He was the General Manager for Design and Construction then – a position he held while procurement irregularities allegedly flourished under his nose.

“Now he wants to be CEO?” scoffed a former Ketraco project manager. “The man oversaw idling fees of Sh6 billion. He rented warehouses for transformers whose parts were stolen. His own record disqualifies him. But instead of bowing out with dignity, he is using Cofek to cry ‘unfair’ because the job requires a master’s degree? Let him cry. The nation needs a competent CEO, not a man who needs a consumer lobby to hide his academic embarrassment.”

Legal experts say Cofek’s case is likely to collapse. “The Government Owned Enterprises Act does not prohibit a board from setting higher qualifications. It only sets minimums,” said lawyer Ndegwa Wahome. “This is a desperate, last-ditch move by a desperate man who knows he cannot compete. The court will see through it.”

For Wamukota, the tears – if they come – will not be from judicial sympathy. They will be from the searing realisation that his own record, his own lack of papers, and his own questionable degree have been laid bare for all of Kenya to see. No court order can hide that shame. No Cofek press release can make him qualified.

And as one anonymous Ketraco staffer put it: “If he had a master’s degree, he would not need Cofek. The fact that he does tells you everything. He is the least qualified candidate. And he knows it. That is why he is crying in the courtroom. But the nation is not crying with him.”