Well you are entitled to your opinion, but.... I just don't see it. I saw the same thing with network engineers I knew, and it is somewhat analogous. That is: people who came into network engineering just from years on the job, only to find some guy who passed a test and never did a thing would get a better job. That is just not how it works. NI certification says nothing about commitment. I am committed because I stay with NI material from job to job, company to company, then my own company. Commitment is not a test. I don't see your point really but it is one the larger NI alliance members are taking. I respect some of it, but don't really agree.
I also feel that the NI certification path says there is only one way to program. I saw all kinds of labview programming over the years; some bad, some good. But most of the best was not from guys taking tests.