Labour Cabinet Secretary Alfred Mutua has written to Senate Speaker Amason Kingi, accusing nominated Senator Gloria Orwoba of operating a fake recruitment agency under the guise of facilitating labour export.
The explosive allegations came during a tense session of the Senate Labour Committee, which devolved into a heated exchange between the Cabinet Secretary, Senator Orwoba, and representatives of recruitment agencies.
Appearing before the committee, Dr. Mutua claimed that the senator had not only run a fake agency but also engaged in extortion, demanding non-existent jobs from legitimate recruiters and issuing threats to officials in the Ministry of Labour.
The CS said his ministry had received complaints from recruitment stakeholders regarding interference and intimidation linked to the senator.Senator Orwoba, while acknowledging her office’s involvement in collaborating with the National Employment Authority to source job opportunities for youths from Bobasi, defended her actions as part of her oversight mandate. “My interest in labour export is purely to ensure transparency and accountability in the process,” she stated.
The confrontation intensified when Senator Orwoba raised concerns over the fate of 89 Kenyans who had each paid KSh 15,000 to recruitment agencies but were yet to secure overseas jobs.
In response, CS Mutua explained that the job placements were being rolled out in phases and assured the committee that individuals who were not selected had been refunded.
Seeking to address growing complaints around affordability of recruitment fees, Dr. Mutua announced that the ministry is exploring mechanisms to channel resources from the Youth Enterprise Development Fund and the Uwezo Fund to assist job-seeking Kenyans in paying agency fees.
The session grew more contentious when CS Mutua tabled a letter addressed to Senate Speaker Amason Kingi, formally accusing Senator Orwoba of misconduct. However, the committee declined to deliberate on the contents of the letter during the session.
The CS challenged the senator to present evidence to support her claims that thousands of Kenyans were duped under the watch of the Labour Ministry.
Meanwhile, the Labour Ministry has issued a strong advisory to Kenyans seeking jobs abroad, warning them against traveling on tourist visas instead of proper work permits — a move that exposes them to exploitation and deportation.
The ongoing row highlights deeper tensions in the country’s labour export framework, with growing calls for transparency, regulation, and accountability to protect vulnerable job seekers from exploitation and fraud.
