A Senate Committee will sit in Eldoret this week to investigate alleged fraud by First Choice Recruitment Agency affecting more than 8,000 youth who were seeking foreign jobs in Qatar and other countries.
Clerk to the Senate JM Nyegenye confirmed that they will hold a joint meeting with the Uasin Gishu county assembly committee on the matter where victims of the alleged fraud are expected to testify.
The Labour and Social Welfare Committee will be in Eldoret Monday and Tuesday to hold sessions at the Uasin Gishu county assembly hall.
Nyengenye wrote a letter to human rights crusader Kimutai Kirui who petitioned the Senate on behalf of the affected residents to probe the alleged fraud.
“The purpose of this letter is to invite you to appear before the committee at its meeting in Eldoret on Tuesday April 4, 2023, at the Uasin Gishu assembly,” said the clerk.
He said the petitioner may be accompanied to the meeting by any person who may assist in responding to information sought by the committee.
Two weeks ago, the firm flagged off another group of more than 100 youth who travelled out for jobs in Poland, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. CEO of the firm Judy Chepchirchir insists the firm was engaged in genuine and legal activities to help millions of Kenyans seeking employment abroad.
Chepchirchir is among those expected to be summoned by the committee.
First Choice has been at the centre of controversies over claims that it collected millions of shillings from youth in Uasin Gishu but failed to secure jobs for them in Qatar before last year's World Cup.
However, Chepchir has denied the allegations and termed them as witch hunt by rivals. "So far we have processed more than 8,000 youth who secured jobs outside the country especially Qatar and travelled to take up the jobs," she said.
She said her office was only aware of about 20 youth who were complaining over missed jobs in Qatar but the firm had already refunded four of them. Some went to court while others were yet to approach First Choice and seek refund.
"Most of the others making noise are not even our clients but those being used to ruin our reputation," Chepchirchir said.
Some of the youth who claim to have missed the jobs after paying money to First Choice wrote petitions to Uasin Gishu assembly and the Senate seeking investigations into the matter.
They complained that their parents had suffered a lot and some even sold off land to pay First Choice for processing their travel abroad.
The Uasin Gishu assembly completed investigations through an ad hoc Committee which recommended cancellation of the firm's license and investigations by the DCI.
However Chepchirchir said her licence to operate the firm was legally issued and that she had done nothing wrong to warrant cancellation.
She said the firm's offices in Eldoret were open and operate transparently and that anyone with complaints was free to seek audience with them.
"If anyone has issues with us the best thing to do is to seek audience with us so that we address relevant concerns instead of making noise out there," she said.
She denied that her firm was linked to some powerful politicians noting that the same claims were untrue.
-Edited by SKanyara