The Public Service Commission (PSC) head office at Commission House in Nairobi in March 2018. PSC reviewed staffing levels for the government in 2021.
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Jobs scandal: Taxpayers’ pain over bloated public service
When the Public Service Commission (PSC) reviewed staffing levels in the government in 2021, it determined that 466 staff were enough to serve some 45 cadres at the National Treasury.
But when auditors last year analysed employee data at Treasury, they found it had employed 1,061 staff for the positions, overshooting the required number by 595 (128 per cent).
“Review of the National Treasury staff establishment revealed that 39 positions with authorised establishment had 92 members of staff in-post. Similarly, 45 positions with an authorised establishment of 466 members of staff had 1,061 staff members in-post, exceeding the approved establishment by 595 staff members,” Auditor-General Nancy Gathungu said in the report for the 2021/22 financial year.
Another report shows that, during the same year, the State Department for Public Works employed 74 staff who were not required in some 13 cadres, having 101 employees where only 27 were needed. During the year, the State department spent Sh807 million as compensation to employees, out of which Sh559.8 million were basic salaries to permanent employees and Sh236.6 million allowances.
A series of reports on different public agencies have lifted the lid on rampant breach of the law by employing more staff than required, spending billions of shillings on people who have been given jobs but have no work to do. The auditors warn that public agencies could be hiring just for the sake of it and without seeking concurrence from PSC. The auditor-general notes that some agencies have been bypassing PSC while hiring new staff, escaping the checks and balances that would prevent excessive hiring.
The PSC yesterday indicated that, before hiring new staff in the public service, ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) are required to request the commission stating available vacancies and attach an approval from Treasury, assuring of availability of budgets to support additional staff.
“The PSC undertakes recruitment or filling of vacancies in MDAs in accordance with the PSC Act, 2017 and PSC Regulations, 2020. In filling vacancies, the commission requires MDAs to make a request to the Commission declaring vacancies and they must also attach treasury approval for budget support for the declared vacancies,” said Mr Browne Kutswa, PSC’s Director of Corporate Communications.
“Further, the commission therefore does not fill vacancies that are not provided for in the MDAs staff establishment. The commission only acts once it is satisfied that all the requirements have been met by the requesting MDAs in accordance with PSC Act, 2017,” he said.
The State Department for University Education also had 98 excess workers, while there were also cases of discrepancies in payroll and biodata, calling to question the efficacy of controls to prevent fraud.
“Review of payroll and the biodata revealed that names of 45 officers appeared in the biodata but were not in the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Database (IPPD) system. In the circumstances, controls ... are weak and may expose the State Department to fraud and other irregularities,” Ms Gathungu said.
The Ministry of Energy had 234 excess staff following the 2021 review of staffing levels, employing 393 in a place of 159, while at the State Department for Infrastructure, 424 of the 658 staff ought not have been hired.
“The actual officers in-post at the date of the review was 420 more than the defined optimal level. Although, management has appealed the decision of the PSC, no response had been received as at the time of audit. In the circumstances, the ministry is overstaffed and expenditure on compensation of employees may not be effective use of public resources,” the audit report on the Ministry of Energy states.
The public wage bill crossed the Sh1 trillion mark for the first time in the year to June 2022, after recording an average Sh72 billion annual increase since 2016, according to the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC).
Employing high numbers of staff hampers service delivery by public agencies, since they add the burden of salary expenditures, while the excess workforce adds little or no value.
The revelations come just when the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has revealed how the National Museum of Kenya (NMK) lost Sh491 million paid to some 105 ghost workers between 2016 and 2022.
The EACC has recommended the prosecution of former NMK Director-General Mzalendo Kibunja, Human Resource Director and Acting Director-General Stanvas Ongalo, as well as Mr Oliver Rabuor and Mr Wycliffe Ongata, both in the payroll office, for unlawful acquisition of public property, conspiracy to commit an economic crime, abuse of office, acquisition of proceeds of crime, money laundering, and financial misconduct. It also wants the Sh491 million recovered from them.
Kenya’s public wage bill has grown by an average of Sh72 billion annually since 2016 and crossed Sh1 trillion last year, The public service workforce during the period increased from 774,700 to 963,200, a 24.3 per cent growth. Over the past two years, about 78,000 workers have been employed in the government, an average of 39,000 new workers annually.
Further audit reports reveal that, despite counties employing thousands of workers, many lack approved staff establishments —- the yardstick they should ideally use to measure the number of workers they need — which has left devolved units spending up to 50 per cent of their revenues on salaries, even as service delivery remains poor.
Mandera, Garissa, Marsabit, Meru, Kitui, Kiambu, Nandi, Nakuru, Kajiado, Vihiga, Bungoma, Siaya, Homa Bay and Migori lack approved staff establishments as per the latest audit reports, even as they employ tens of thousands of workers. Several counties commissioned audits to weed-out ghost workers upon assumption to office of new governors last year, where eight revealed they had 5,953 ghost workers.
West Pokot was found to have the highest number of ghost workers (2,300) who drained the devolved unit of Sh1 billion, followed by Kiambu (2,299 workers) who had guzzled the county’s Sh1.49 billion.
In 2021/22, the auditor-general revealed that, in Kiambu, 43 members of staff shared bank accounts and 35 new staff members recruited on permanent and pensionable terms were aged over 50. The county employed 1,042 staff in 2021/22 alone.
“However, review of the personnel files revealed that 27 newly recruited members of staff did not apply for the positions appointed as indicated in their files, application letters filed in the personal files for 11 newly recruited members of staff were undated and appointment letters for 31 members of staff sampled for audit were issued on dates ahead of application for the positions,” the auditor-general revealed on Kiambu County.
Kisii County was also found to have spent Sh300 million in the payment of salaries to 333 officers in eight departments, who were not in the approved staff establishment.
Further, the county spent Sh31.2 million as salaries to 69 excess drivers during the year.
“This was revealed through analysis of the IPPD payroll for June, 2022 that the county had 170 drivers against 101 serviceable motor vehicles. In the circumstances, value for money on the expenditure of Sh31.2 million could not be confirmed,” the auditor-general stated.
Counties are estimated to have lost more than Sh35 billion to thousands of ghost workers since the onset of devolution, with Nyamira leading with Sh13.9 billion and Nandi following closely at Sh12 billion.
