The government has suspended payroll system access for 84 human resources officers as investigations continue into suspected irregular payments involving the Ministry of Health, Kenya Police Service and Kenya Prisons Service.
Public Service Cabinet Secretary Geoffrey Ruku announced the move on Friday, October 16, saying the officers would also be placed on mandatory 30-day leave to allow investigators to examine the transactions.
The action follows a preliminary report by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), which flagged suspected irregularities in the public service payroll.
“Following ongoing investigations by the DCI and a subsequent preliminary report that have unearthed irregular transactions in the public service payroll, especially in the Ministry of Health, Kenya Police Service and Kenya Prison Service, I have directed the revocation of payroll system user rights of 84 human resources officers,” Ruku said.
He added that the leave would allow further forensic investigations into transactions that may have led to the loss of public funds.
Ruku said other human resources officers would take over payroll management in the affected institutions as the investigations continue. He warned that further action would be taken against those found responsible once the investigations are complete.
The latest move follows an earlier government probe into suspected payroll fraud across ministries, departments, agencies and state corporations.
A forensic audit presented to the government identified suspected irregularities worth Ksh6.2 billion in 12 of the 53 state departments examined.
The audit flagged issues including unauthorised changes to payroll records, irregular payments, weaknesses in the handling of statutory deductions and gaps in oversight.
The Cabinet subsequently directed the DCI to investigate the suspected fraud, verify personal numbers used in payroll processing and pursue those found responsible in accordance with the law.
Ruku has also directed all ministries, departments, agencies and state corporations to migrate to the Human Resource Information System (HRIS) as part of efforts to strengthen payroll controls and improve the management of public funds.
In August, the Public Service Commission (PSC) directed government institutions to process salaries exclusively through the official payroll system following concerns about payments made outside the platform.
PSC Chairperson Francis Meja warned human resources managers that they could be held personally accountable for failing to prevent irregular salary payments.
The National Treasury is also engaging the World Bank on reforms needed to unlock funding, including measures to address questionable salary payments, suspected ghost workers and inconsistencies in payroll records across national and county governments.
