By Steven Godfrey Mkweteza

Vice Chancellor of the University of Malawi (UNIMA) Professor John Kalenga Saka has expressed great concern over the influx of fake UNIMA certificates on the job market, saying the development compromises the credibility of the higher learning education.

Professor Saka said this on Friday when presiding over the first congregation of the award of Diploma in Law at the Staff Development Institute (SDI) in Blantyre.

Saka indicated that his office receives a number of cases on fake UNIMA certificates from prospective employers.

“In this modern technology, people have become very sophisticated as they can design the replica certificates of UNIMA. This is making employers not to trust our Malawi Universities,’’ he observed.

He therefore advised the prospective employers to bring to book such crooked people found with fake certificates.

Speaking at the same ceremony, the Director of SDI Mr. Owen Mutega bemoaned the low enrolment of female law students.

‘’The legal fraternity is dominated by men which is not a good development. Therefore, we are encouraging female candidates to enrol with various law learning institutions so that we can level the playing field…and reduce the shortage of competent and qualified legal practitioners in the country,’’ Mutega explained.

Mutega also urged the graduants to showcase their expertise and professionalism in the course of their work accepted to the bar.

The graduation ceremony saw 67 graduants receiving their law diploma after a two year long course.

SDI started offering human resource development programmes since 1962 and is affiliated to the University of Malawi.