PSC seeks to upgrade system to curb fake certificates

Public Service Commission chairman Francis Meja. [File, Standard] 

The Public Service Commission (PSC) is now blaming outdated technology for its inability to curb the proliferation of fake academic certificates in the civil service.

Chairman, Francis Meja, yesterday told Parliament that the verification systems are obsolete and expensive to maintain, noting that this has created loopholes that rogue job seekers exploit.

“The commission is relying on old technology to verify and weed out fake papers. As a result, the process takes too long and is expensive,” said Meja.

Members of the National Assembly Committee on Cohesion and Equal Opportunities put pressure on the commission over what they described as staffing gaps and governance concerns in the public service.

Amid this growing challenge, Meja said plans are underway for the PSC to partner with the Commission for University Education and the Kenya National Examinations Council to roll out a modern, integrated system capable of instantly authenticating academic documents.

“We are carrying out reforms with the two institutions that will enable us to detect a fake academic document at the press of a button,” he said.

“We are using a system which is 15 years old and we are making major changes that will have a positive impact.” 

The commission also admitted that staffing shortfalls were hampering operations.

“The approved staff establishment is 518, but we currently have only 273 employees, leaving a gap of 245,” said Chief Executive Officer Paul Famba.

Staffing irony

The MPs read irony that the body mandated to recruit public servants was understaffed. They urged PSC to lead by example.

“If PSC, whose core mandate is to hire public servants, is complaining about staff shortages, what about other State agencies?” said Dick Maungu (Luanda).

The team faulted the commission’s proposal to decentralise services to the county level, terming the move too ambitious owing to the current budgetary constraints.

“Due to a lack of resources, you should start by decentralising to regional levels first,” suggested Joshua Oron (Kisumu Central).

The committee Chairperson, Adan Yussuf Haji also raised governance questions, wondering why some of the officers above the mandatory retirement age of 60 remain on payroll.

He also faulted PCS for operating without a comprehensive policy framework to guide recruitment and other key functions.

PSC said it has recruited 8,200 interns since 2019, supported by an annual budget of Sh2 billion for stipends, though additional funding was required to sustain and expand the programme.

“We need more resources to support recruitment, training, monitoring and evaluation of interns,” said Famba.