Vihiga county pays Sh2 million monthly to ghost workers - audit
Vihiga Governor Wilber Ottichilo (Left) receiving the human resource audit report from Vihiga County Public Service Board chairman Franklin Esipila.
A workforce audit has unearthed 48 ghost workers in Vihiga County who are earning Sh2,179,516 every month.
A review by the Vihiga County Public Service Board also revealed that ghost workers could number up to 1,097, who are earning a total of Sh33 million every month, and recommended further investigations.
The report, released by board chairman Franklin Esipila and handed over to Governor Wilber Ottichilo yesterday, shows the 48 are masquerading as employees but their files could not be traced and were not found at any workstation.The audit was conducted in two phases.
The first began in June 2020 and aimed to find out whether listed workers were at their workplaces.
The second started in May 2021 and largely focused on assessing the payroll and available employee data in respective files case by case.
The report, which was likely to cause jitters among the county’s more than 3,000 workers, says the 48 are among a list of 1,145 employees who are on the payroll but were not found at their workstations at the time of the physical audit, suggesting that there could be more ghost workers.
Sh33 million loss
The 1,145 draw monthly salaries totalling Sh33 million, with Mr Esipila’s team calling for further investigations.
The board says an analysis showed that 1,931 employees were at their workstations at the time of the physical audit.
These workers earn monthly salaries totalling Sh158,950,496.05, putting to question the Sh230 million wage bill paid out by the devolved unit as salaries every month.
Speaking when he handed over the report to Governor Ottichilo, Mr Esipila said they cited issues the board wants addressed.
“Our report has pointed out things that have happened on the payroll and employment. We have come up with various recommendations,” Mr Esipila said.
Speaking after receiving the report, Dr Ottichilo said the audit was informed by an untenable wage burden.
Defend themselves
He said: “The audit has found 48 ghost workers whose files do not exist. We will summon them so that we [can] have this issue addressed. They have been listed as ghost workers but will be given room to defend themselves.”
But he called for calm among workers, saying there is no cause for panic and assuring the affected staff would get a chance to be heard.
The report will also see some staff redeployed to workstations relevant to their qualifications, while others will be asked to provide their academic papers as proof of their qualifications.
This, Dr Ottichilo said, will ensure an efficient workforce and lead to improved services.
The board also recommended deserving employees to be promoted and others re-designated.
The audit found that several employees had stagnated in the same job group for over five years.
