Kenya Power, Hustler Fund, KRA CEOs Among 17 Summoned For Defying Ruto

Also expected to attend include Principal Secretaries (PS) for State Departments under which the agencies fall as well as board chairpersons.

Marvin Chege Marvin Chege
Nov 8, 2023 - 18:21 Updated: Nov 8, 2023 - 19:12
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Kenya Power, Hustler Fund, KRA CEOs Among 17 Summoned For Defying Ruto
President William Ruto speaking during the launch of Gava Mkononi App on June 30, 2023. /PCS

The government has summoned the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of 17 state agencies for failing to comply with President William Ruto's order regarding payment of government services through eCitizen.

The Secretary to the Cabinet Mercy Wanjau, who chairs the eCitizen Implementation Committee, revealed that the CEOs will have to appear for a meeting on Tuesday, November 14 to explain why they have not yet enforced the order.

Also expected to attend include Principal Secretaries (PS) for State Departments under which the agencies fall as well as board chairpersons.

Secretary to the Cabinet, Mercy Wanjau, appearing before the Parliamentary vetting Committee on October 22, 2022. /STANDARD DIGITAL

“Following conversations that have happened, these state corporations have been invited for a meeting on Tuesday at 9:00 a.m. and this meeting is to be attended by the CEO, the chair of the board and the PS who is the accounting officer,” she said.

Wanjau, who was speaking in Syokimau, Machakos County, revealed that the summons were made following a comply-or-explain letter that had been sent to the various agencies on August 4, 2023.

Among the parastatal bosses summoned come from firms such as:

  1. Kenya Revenue Authority
  2. Kenya Power
  3. Kenya National Examination Council
  4. National Hospital Insurance Fund
  5. Higher Education Loans Board
  6. Hustler Fund
  7. Agricultural Finance Corporation
  8. Kenyatta National Hospital
  9. Kenya Bureau of Standards
  10. Kenya Ports Authority
  11. National Cereals and Produce Board
  12. National Aids Control Council
  13. Mathari Referral and Teaching Hospital
  14. Kenya Railways Corporation
  15. Kenya Ferry Services Limited
  16. Kenya National Trading Corporation
  17. Kenya School of Government
She further stated that even though the agencies had initially been granted a temporary exemption from closing their PayBill numbers and channelling all payments to 222222 on account of their unique services, they were still bound by the December 31 deadline.

“The exemption was on the premise that indeed you need time but you still must remain on the pathway for digitisation without fracturing your services,” added Wanjau.

Immigration and Citizen Services PS Julis Bitok under whose docket eCitizen falls had initially warned top executives of state-owned agencies that they risk losing their jobs for failing to declare all revenues collected on the eCitizen platform.

Addressing representatives of Ministries, Corporations, Departments and Agencies (MCDAs) at Mlolongo, Machakos County on Tuesday, the PS cited an analysis of potential revenue from the over 11,000 services on eCitizen against declared amounts which he revealed pointed to the diversion of collected money.

He attributed the discrepancy to cash payments for services against President Ruto's directive to process all online payments for government services through the PayBill, 222222.

On Monday, August 7, the government acted on President Ruto's directive on Friday, June 30 and shut down the over 1,400 pay bills in a move geared at consolidating all payments to one channel.

"There is a dedicated government pay channel, 222222. The expectation of the government is that all government revenue must now use the pay channel so that the Treasury can have sight of every government service that is paid for.

"I am going to be making an announcement here that in the next 90 days, all other pay bills must be shut down because we have a problem with some of the PayBills that we cannot account for. We have close to over 1,000 PayBills some of which we don't have sight of. They must now be closed," he announced at the time.

According to Ruto, the government was realigning financial management to ensure efficiency and reduce corruption tendencies fuelled by physical interactions in government offices.

President William Ruto, Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua and Interior CS, Kithure Kindiki during the launch of Gava Mkononi App on June 30, 2023. /PCS

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