President William Ruto’s nominees to the PSC have vowed to eliminate ghost workers and cases of fake papers while instituting bold reforms to restore public confidence in the government.
Public Service Commission is constitutionally mandated to, among other things, oversee the recruitment of civil servants.
Ruto appointed former IEBC commissioner Boya Molu and seven others to the commission on December 20 last year.
Mary Kimonye, Harun Maalim, Mwanamaka Amani, Francis Meja, Irene Asienga, Joan Andisi and Francis Owino were also nominated. The eight nominees vowed to eradicate ghost workers and ensure all government workers are accounted for.
They spoke when they appeared before the National Assembly Committee on Labour.
Cases of ghost workers and fake academic certifi cates have been rampant in the civil service, locking out qualified professionals.
Appearing before the committee chaired by Runyenjes MP Eric Karemba, former NTSA boss Francis Meja blamed the system for ghost workers and fake academic papers.
“It [fake papers and ghost workers) has been allowed to go on, why don’t we have ghost workers in the private sector?” he asked.
He said the only solution is to digitise the system.
“Why can’t we interface PSC database to that of the Kenya National Examination Council so that when you try to apply with fake papers it is instantly rejected?” he asked.
“It is important to digitise the payroll system to know how many workers we have as a country,” Asienga said.
Boya came under fire from some members who felt that he should not be allowed in public office following the Supreme Court nullification of the 2017 elections.
Muhoroni MP Onyango Koyoo said Boya was lucky to continue serving in the public service. He said the verdict was a big indictment to anyone who served in the commission.
“After failing the election of 2017,
you were allowed to continue serving. You should not bother Kenyans
that you want another job,” Koyoo
said.
