Government stops IEBC recruitment

The National Treasury has stopped a planned recruitment of senior managers to replace those who either retired or got sacked from the IEBC.

The Treasury in a letter to Acting CEO of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) Marjan Hussein Marjan said the commission had not obtained relevant approval for the exercise.

The letter dated 24th by Treasury PS Kamau Thuge said IEBC failed to adhere to the requirement that all new recruitment remain frozen as per the Treasury circular No. 2/2018.

“Considering the tight budgetary framework underpinning the FY 2018/19 and the medium term budget and the fact that the general elections are over we recommend the IEBC to carry out the job evaluation to determine the workload of new positons first,” Thuge said.

It adds; “IEBC should also review the current organization structure after carrying out a job evaluation with a view of having lean permanent staff and explore possibility of hiring temporary staff when necessary, especially during general elections.”

On April 11, the commission advertised the positons of three directors (Human Resource, Legal Affairs and Procurement) just days after sending chief electoral officer Ezra Chiloba on compulsory leave.

Qualified candidates were requested to submit their application on the commission job portal, https://www.iebc.or.ke/iebcjobs by 13 April, 2018.

“Shortlisted applicants shall be required to avail clearances from the following institutions as they appear for interview; Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC), Directorate of Criminal Investigation (DCI), Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) and  Higher Education Loans Board.”

They were further requested to provide clearance from professional bodies (where applicable to which the applicant is a member e.g. LSK, ICPAK, AAK, IEK etc and Credit Reference Bureau Africa Ltd or Metropol Credit Reference Bureau.

And just two days after advertising the jobs, IEBC called for expression of interest from qualified human resource firms to officer consultancy services in the recruitment.

“The consultancy firm will undertake the initial interview with appropriate recommendations for final selection of the successful candidates for the positions of Director Supply Chain Management, Director Legal & Public Affairs and Director Human Resource Management & Administration,” a public notice appearing on the Standard last Friday reads in part.

Interested firms have been given just a week to put in their bids, with the deadline being Friday, April 20.

Last year, IEBC sent away its Director of Procurement Lawy Aura for allegedly bungling major procurement deals, among them to Sh2.5 billion tender for ballot papers.

"The Commission on 29 May 2017 relieved the Procurement Director Mr Lawy Aura of his duties necessitated by incompetence that has made operations untenable as we fast approach the General Election," IEBC chairman Wafula Chebukati said then in a statement.

On her side, Praxedes Torery who as the director in charge of Legal Affairs applied for early retirement instead of facing the sack last September. The commission had resolved to subject her to a disciplinary process through interdiction but she got wind of it and opted to retire.

Former Human Resource Director Celestine Kiuluku exited the electoral agency in March last year after her five year contract came to an end and she did not seek renewal. 

Managers Irene Mutai, Mahamud Jabane and Milca Chebosis have been acting in the directorates of HR, Legal and Procurement respectively since the exit of their former bosses.

The electoral body did not advertise the position of Deputy CEO (Elections Operations) following the exit of Betty Nyabuto-Sungura left following the expiry of her contract.

Chairman Wafula Chebukati says the position maybe scrapped after a job evaluation exercise is concluded.