The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has cautioned public officers eyeing elective seats against accepting gifts during the electioneering period without declaring them, warning that failure to comply with the law could expose them to prosecution.
With gifts increasingly being used as political currency to court loyalty, influence decisions and secure support, the commission says public officers must remain within the law or risk falling foul of conflict-of-interest provisions.
EACC Director of Preventive Services Vincent Okongo said public officers are bound by strict legal requirements governing the receipt and disclosure of gifts, regardless of their form or value.
The enactment of the Conflict-of-Interest Act, 2025 established a consolidated legal framework for identifying, disclosing and managing conflicts between public duty and private interests.
“Public officers must comply with the requirements relating to gifts, especially during this electioneering period, preferential treatment, undue influence, outside employment, recusal and declarations of income, assets and liabilities,” said Mr Okongo.
The Director Preventive Services at the Ethics & Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC), Vincent Okongo, addressing the Stakeholders Meeting on the Budgetary Allocations for the Commission in Mombasa.
Photo credit: Kevin Odit| Nation Media Group
According to EACC, County Public Service Boards are required to enforce the law by establishing conflict-of-interest management frameworks within county governments.
Mr Okongo said the boards should develop and operationalise policies, guidelines and procedures for identifying, declaring, recording and managing conflicts of interest.
“At the individual level, public officers must identify and disclose actual, apparent and potential conflicts of interest. They must not participate in decisions where their private interests conflict with their official responsibilities,” he said.
At the institutional level, reporting entities are required to establish effective mechanisms for receiving disclosures, maintaining conflict-of-interest registers, assessing reported conflicts, documenting recusals and meeting statutory reporting obligations.
Mr Okongo was speaking in Kisumu during the 2026 Annual Convention for the County Public Service Boards.
Beyond the threat of political patronage and compromised public officers, county public service boards are also facing scrutiny over weaknesses in recruitment, promotions and payroll management, which continue to expose taxpayers to potentially massive financial losses.
The EACC has flagged potential irregular payroll payments amounting to Sh5.898 billion in the 2024/2025 financial year, raising fresh questions about the integrity of county human resource management systems.
The anti-graft agency said weaknesses in payroll management, unreliable personnel records and inadequate oversight had exposed county governments to potentially fraudulent payments running into billions of shillings.
Report says irregular payroll payments persist in Bomet, Garissa, Isiolo, Samburu, Nyeri, Migori, Nyamira and Embu counties.
Photo credit: Shutterstock
An interim payroll audit report on the Government's Human Resource Information System of Kenya (HRIS-K) identified potential irregular payments amounting to Sh5.898 billion, alongside significant gaps in payroll data management, system integration and access controls.
The findings have raised serious concerns about the accuracy, integrity and reliability of government payroll records.
“The audit revealed potential irregular payments amounting to approximately Sh5.898 billion for the FY 2024-2025, alongside significant weaknesses in payroll data management, system integration and access controls,” said Mr Okongo.
Among the key findings were missing employee details, invalid KRA PINs, multiple identification numbers, shared bank accounts and employees recorded as having been posted before their dates of employment.
The audit also identified instances of employees editing their own records, as well as millions of payroll records being altered without proper timestamps.
Such weaknesses expose county governments to payroll fraud, financial losses, penalties and other legal consequences.
Recent government payroll reforms have placed greater emphasis on continuous audits, employee verification and stronger institutional controls.
Mr Okongo described the findings as a significant governance concern, urging county governments to embrace digitisation as a critical tool in strengthening integrity and accountability.
“It’s an integrity intervention and county governments must ensure that every employee on the payroll is properly appointed, verified, assigned duties and supported by accurate personnel records,” he said.
The findings come against the backdrop of concerns raised by the Auditor-General in the 2023/2024 financial year report over irregular recruitment practices in county governments.
The report found that eight counties had recruited thousands of employees without following due process, with no evidence of advertisements, shortlisting or interviews before the appointments were made.
In some instances, there was no evidence that vacancies had been declared, while in others, personal files containing employees’ recruitment records were missing. Despite these shortcomings, the affected staff continue to draw salaries and allowances.
The counties named in the report are Samburu, Trans Nzoia, Nairobi, Narok, Nandi, Embu, Machakos and Uasin Gishu.
In Samburu, the report found that the county government had employed 29 members of staff under the Governor’s Delivery Unit without approval from the County Public Service Board.
Other challenges confronting county public service boards include understaffing, overstaffing, the recruitment of casual workers and difficulties in verifying academic certificates.
The EACC also raised concerns over county governments undertaking promotions without necessarily adhering to established schemes of service.
Mr Okongo said governance in the counties continued to face challenges arising from corruption, abuse of office, conflicts of interest, nepotism, favouritism, unethical leadership, weak accountability mechanisms and disregard for established laws and procedures.
“When recruitment is compromised, we sacrifice competence. When promotions are influenced by personal connections rather than merit, we demoralise deserving officers. When disciplinary processes are selective, we institutionalise impunity. And when payroll systems are manipulated, public funds intended for service delivery are lost through fraudulent and unauthorised payments,” he said.
Kisumu Governor Anyang’ Nyong’o echoed the concerns, warning county public service boards against allowing rising wage bills to undermine development and service delivery.
He cautioned that creating employment at the expense of essential services was not a mark of progress, noting that counties must strike a balance between staffing levels and their capacity to deliver services.
“A county can employ everybody, but if it has no money left to buy medicine, maintain roads or supply water, then there is no success in creating employment without creating development,” he said.
Governor Nyong’o urged the boards to uphold merit, professionalism and accountability in managing the county workforce.
“I still plead with you to recruit people who can work, promote those who deserve promotion, train those who need new skills, and hold accountable those who fail public trust,” he said.
