CS RUKU WARNS CORRUPT OFFICERS

The Ministry of Public Service revealed a country-wide crackdown on corrupt human resource officers who have been accused of engaging in tampering with government payroll systems, with the operation to start this week.

The Cabinet Secretary Geoffrey Ruku issued a warning to civil servants engaged in corrupt activities that those found guilty will be dismissed immediately and charged.

Speaking to the people of Embu at the weekend, the CS said the audit of the public service's human resource systems conducted recently found wide-scale malpractice, collusion and systemic abuse of the public system for the aim of siphoning off public funds.
According to the audit report, some of the HR officers have been unlawfully altering the date of birth of public servants in the government records to enable them to work after the retirement age.

Ruku described this as not only illegal but also gross abuse of office that erodes meritocracy, transparency, and equity in the civil service.

The CS further revealed that some human resource officers have been granting illegal exemptions from taxes on some people, resulting in the government huge losses in revenue. He again emphasized that the fraudulent practice was no longer acceptable under his leadership.
"We have observed disturbing trends where a few HR officials are helping individuals to avoid paying taxes and alter official documents to remain in service illegally. The culprits will be brought before the law and face the full force of the law," Ruku warned.

The audit also exposed instances of job group tampering, where government officials were unusually promoted or transferred into more expensive salary grades and within a very short period of time without observing due process.
Ruku explained that such actions have inflated the public wage bill and demoralized hardworking officers who operate within procedure.

He confirmed that his ministry will work closely with the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) and other involved government institutions to investigate and take action against rogue HR officers both at National and County levels."We will work hand-in-hand with the EACC to recover taxpayers' funds and turn the public service into a symbol of merit, not a corruption hub," said Ruku.According to him, investigations into payroll fraud, ghost workers, irregular promotions, and unlawful allowances are already underway.