Inside the battle to oust
Machakos Public Service Board
Details on sex, graft, incompetence and self interest and sheer greed
By Anchor Reporter
The Machakos County Assembly is battling with a
motion to remove some members of the Public Service Board following a fall out
with Governor Wavinya Ndeti. |
| Governor Wavinya and her Deputy Mr Mwangangi(L) |
If approved by one fifth of the members of the
assembly, Governor Wavinya will be empowered to remove the Chairman George
Kioko wa Luka, his Deputy Ex Councilor Cecilia Sereka, man alleged to be randy
now serving as Secretary of the Board Mr. Onesmus Muia Mutisya and Ms. Stella
Nduku Muthoka.
 |
| Speaker Anne Kiusya |
They are accused of a plethora of offences that
undermine their integrity, nepotism, Conflict of Interest, abuse of office and
irregular hiring. Muia also faces allegations of sexual nature- by using the
tools provided for his work to procure sexual favours. The Board members deny
the allegations and allege that the fall-out is as a result of rejecting
efforts by the governor to impose unqualified people to be employed as Chief
Officers of the county in the ongoing recruitment efforts.
The motion is being prosecuted by Assembly
Majority Leader Mr Nicholas Nzioka who is also the MCA for Machakos Central
Ward.
 |
| Mr Nzioka |
Below is the exact wording of the petition
“Honorable Speaker, Aware that Article 10 (2) of
the Constitution of Kenya, 2010 provides for
the National values and principles of governance
beinga. Patriotism, national unity, sharing, devolution of power, the rule of
law, democracy and
participation of the people
b. Human dignity, equity, social justice,
inclusiveness, equality, human rights, nondiscrimination and protection of the
marginalized
c. Good governance, integrity, transparency and
accountability
d. Sustainable development
Honorable Speaker, aware that Article 73 of the
Constitution of Kenya stipulates that;
1) Authority assigned to a State officer—
(a) Is a public trust to be exercised in a manner
that—
(i) is consistent with the purposes and objects of
this Constitution;
(ii) Demonstrates respect for the people;
(iii)
Brings honor to the nation and dignity to the office; and
(iv) Promotes public confidence in the integrity
of the office
(b) Vests in the State officer the responsibility
to serve the people, rather than the power to rule them.
(2) The guiding principles of leadership and
integrity include—
(a) Selection on the basis of personal integrity,
competence and suitability, or election in free
and fair elections;
(b) Objectivity and impartiality in decision
making, and in ensuring that decisions are not
influenced by nepotism, favoritism, other improper
motives or corrupt practices;
(c) Selfless service based solely on the public
interest, demonstrated by—
(i) Honesty in the execution of public duties; and
(ii) The declaration of any personal interest that
may conflict with public duties; (d)
Accountability to the public for decisions and
actions; and
(e) Discipline and commitment in service to the
people.
Honorable Speaker, Appreciating that Article 232
of the Constitution of Kenya, 2010 provides for
the values and principles of public service as –
a. High standards of professionalism ethics
b. Efficient, effective and economic use of
resources
c. Responsive, prompt, effective, impartial and
equitable provision of services
d. Involvement of the people in the process of
policy making
e. Accountability for administrative acts
f. Transparency and provisions to the public of
timely, accurate information
g. Subject to paragraphs (h) and (i) , fair
competition and merit as the basis of appointments and
promotions
h. Representation of Kenya’s diverse communities
i. Affording adequate and equal opportunities for
appointment, training and advancement, at
levels of the public service ofi. Men and women
ii. The members of all ethnic groups and
iii. Persons with disabilities.
Honorable Speaker, aware that Article 235(1) of
the Constitution of Kenya stipulates that a county
government is responsible, within a framework of
uniform norms and standards prescribed by an Act
of Parliament, for––
(a) Establishing and abolishing offices in its
public service;
(b)
Appointing persons to hold or act in those offices, and confirming
appointments; and
(c) Exercising disciplinary control over and
removing persons holding or acting in those offices.
Honorable Speaker, acknowledging that Section 55
of the County Governments Act, 2012, provides
for the objectives of County Public Service being;
(a) Provide for evaluation and reporting on the
extent to which the values and principles referred to in
Articles 10 and 232 of the Constitution are
complied with in the county public service;
(b) Provide for the organization, staffing and
functioning of the county public service in ways that
ensure efficient, quality and productive services
for the people of the county;
(c) Provide for institutions, systems and
mechanisms for human resource utilization and development
in a manner that best enhances service delivery by
county public service institutions;
(d) Provide a framework of uniform norms and
standards to be applied in all counties in respect of—
(i) Establishment and abolition of offices in the
county public service;
(ii) Appointment of persons to hold or act in
those offices;
(iii) Confirming appointments; or
(iv) Exercising disciplinary control over and
removal of persons holding or acting in those
offices
(e) Provide for the promotion of the values and
principles set out in Articles 10 and 232 of the
Constitution in the county public service;
(f) Provide for human resource management and
career development practices; (g) address staff
shortages and barriers to staff mobility between
counties
(h) Provide for standards to promote ethical
conduct and professionalism in county public service;
(i) Provide for the establishment of County Public
Service Boards; and
(j) Make further provisions relating to appeals in
respect of county governments’ public service.
Honorable Speaker, further aware that Section 57
of the County Governments Act, 2012 establishes
the County Public Service Board. Aware that
Section 58 (5) of the same Act states that:
The members of the Board may only be removed from
office—
(a) On grounds set out for the removal of members
of a constitutional commission under Article
251(1) of the Constitution; and
(b) By a vote of not less than seventy five
percent of all the members of the county assembly.
Honorable Speaker, Acknowledging that Article 251
(1) of the Constitution of Kenya, 2010 provides
that;
(1) A member of a commission (other than an ex
officio member), or the holder of an independent
office, may be removed from office only for—
(a) Serious violation of this Constitution or any
other law, including a contravention of Chapter
six;
(b) Gross misconduct, whether in the performance
of the member’s or office holder’s functions or
otherwise;
(c) Physical or mental incapacity to perform the
functions of office;
(d) Incompetence; or
(e) Bankruptcy.
Honorable Speaker, Cognizant that, Mr. George
Kioko Luka, the Chairperson of the Machakos
County Public Service Board has committed the
offences;
(a) That Mr. George Kioko Luka on 13th July, 2021
presided over the inclusion of four (4) officers
into the payroll by purporting to reinstate them.
The said people were never employees of the
County Government of Machakos. This is gross
misconduct in the performance of the
Chairperson’s functions.
(b) That on 26th April, 2021 Mr. George Kioko Luka
shared a list of his preferred officers for
recruitment to all Board Members in anticipation
of an advertisement that was due to run in the
newspaper. The advertisement was run in May 2021
and closed on 23rd May, 2021.The
advertisement was of 21 positions, twenty Medical
Officers and one General Surgeon. After the
closure of the exercise he personally and
deceitfully added four medical officers and one surgeon
making a total of 26. This violates Article
73(2)(c)(i) of the Constitution on honesty in execution
of public duties.
(c) That Mr. George Kioko Luka has let the board
operate without a substantive Accounting Officer
and went into alliance with the Secretary who has
usurped the powers of both the Chief Executive
Officer of the Secretariat and the Accounting
Officer to serve his interest at the expense of
professionalism expected in the institution. This
is a demonstration of incompetence on his part.
(d) That Mr. George Kioko Luka has constituted an
enterprise in the name of recruitment and
selection that is normally used for illegal
dealings and irregular recruitment. It is simply a
criminal enterprise that no law provides for and a
serious violation of the law.
(e) That on 26th February, 2021 Mr. George Kioko
Luka un-procedurally purported to allocate an
official vehicle to the Vice Chairman, KBX 810T
for the single purpose of facilitating the
hiring of her son, Samson Sereka as a driver.
Consequently he was hired on a three year
contract at Job Group D. The Officer was not
qualified for the Job. This violates Article
73(2)(a) of the Constitution on selection on the
basis of personal integrity, competence and
suitability.
(f) The Chairperson facilitated the hiring of Nine
Officers among them son of the Vice
Chairperson, Ms. Cecelia Mbinya Sereka being
Boniface Mutunkei Sereka of ID 29961233.
Through abuse of delegated authority on 6th
August, 2020. The Officers were employed on
contract effective 4th January, 2021 to September,
2022. The son was employed at entry level
of Job Group K, without the necessary
qualifications. On the 5th October, 2021, in a meeting
convened and Chaired by the Vice Chairperson
(Mother to Boniface Mutunkei) the terms of
the nine officers were illegally changed to
permanent and pensionable terms. This is without
regard to the fact that the officers were all
being employed in a constitutional office whose
term was to end in August, 2022. This is abuse of
office and violation of National Values and
principles of governance as provided for in
Article 10 of the Constitution of Kenya, 2010.
(g) The Chairperson has failed to address the
County’s huge wage bill which is currently at 55.4%
instead of 35% according to regulation 25 (1) (b)
of the Public Finance Management (County
Governments) Regulations, 2015. Instead he has
been presiding over the payment of huge
amounts of money in terms of illegal extraneous/
other allowances to his relatives among
Regina Mwakio Kioko and the Vice Chairperson’s
relatives as well as others working for
different considerations. For instance most
employees of the County Public Service Board are
on extraneous allowances despite the fact that
they report to work at 8.00am and leave at
5.00pm. A look at the list of thirteen among them
his daughter, includes cleaners who are put
on extraneous allowances for just what doing what
they were employed to do. This is violation
of National Values and principles of governance as
provided for in Article 10 of the
Constitution of Kenya, 2010.
(h) That Mr. George Kioko Luka being the
Chairperson of the County Public Service Board has
never reported to the County Assembly through a
report on the extent to which the values and
principles referred to in Articles 10 and 232 are
complied in the County Assembly. This is
according to Section 59(1)(f) of the County
Governments Act, 2012.This is violation of the
Constitution.
Honorable Speaker, aware that, Mr. Onesmus Muia
Mutisya, the Secretary of the Machakos
County Public Service Board has committed the
following offences-
(a) That Mr. Onesmus Muia Mutisya on 27th April,
2020 wrote to the Chief Officer, Department of
Public Service and Quality Management to
unlawfully occasion illegal payments of extraneous
allowances to twenty four (24) officers working in
the County Public Service Board including
himself. This is a serious violation on Chapter
six of the Constitution of Kenya.
(b) That Mr. Onesmus Muia Mutisya
illegally/unlawfully listed himself as a beneficiary of
Extraneous allowances of Kshs. 25,000 per month
knowing well that Board Members are not
entitled to the allowance and without knowledge of
other Board Members. This contravenes
Article 232(1) (a) and (b) on the values and
principles of public services being high standards of
professional ethics, efficient, effective and
economic use of resources.
(c) That Mr. Onesmus Muia Mutisya has listed one
Mr. Joseph Wambua Deputy Secretary/CEO for
extraneous allowances of Kshs. 25,000 knowing very
well that such a position does not exist in
the Board and therefore that would be a violation
of law. This is misuse of public funds, violation
of the Constitution and incompetence.
(d) That Mr. Onesmus Muia Mutisya was involved in
the awarding of extraneous allowances to
thirteen (13) officers including the Daughter of
the Board’s Chairperson, Ms. Regina Wakio
Kioko and dishonestly concealing the surname to
hide identity. This is violation of Chapter six
of the Constitution and misuse of public funds.
(e) That Mr. Onesmus Muia Mutisya wrote the Chief
Officer, Department of Public Service and
Quality Management on the 13th July, 2020 to
deceitfully purport to reinstate to the payroll four
officers claiming that there was a court order to
that effect but where none existed. The said
officers had never been in the County’s payroll
and the same had been communicated by the
CECM Public Service. This contravenes the
provisions of Articles 10 and 232 of the
Constitution of Kenya
(f) That in the month of August , 2021, Mr.
Onesmus Muia Mutisya was accused of sexual
harassment/intimidation by two officers through
letters to the County Secretary and the County
Executive Committee Member for Public Service and
Quality Management, which letters were
copied to all Board Members through their
individual emails together with evidence inform of
electronic messages. The Officers were Hellen
Musau and Caroline Nduku Nzioka. This
contravenes the provisions of Articles 232(1)(a)
and 236 of the Constitution of Kenya on the
values and principles of public service. This is
also gross misconduct.
(g) That by a letter dated 12th May, 2021 Ms.
Caroline Nduku Nzioka was promoted to the position
of Human Resource Management Assistant 1 with
effect from 1st January 2021 but her later held
by Mr. Onesmus Muia Mutisya during which time he
was demanding for sexual favors from her.
When the same did not succeed and she reported the
matter, he went ahead and purported to
withdraw the same via letter dated 22nd September,
2021 without the due process. This is a
serious violation of Article 236(b) of the Constitution
of Kenya.
(h) That
Mr. Onesmus Muia Mutisya unprofessionally uses intimidation and incompetently
handles
official matters in a way that would jeopardize
the operations of the Board. He threatens
Members of the Board through advocates to sue when
board members are on a different opinion
on a matter under consideration. This shows
clearly he is incompetent and abuses the Office of
the Secretary, County Public Service Board.
(i) That Mr. Onesmus Muia Mutisya being the
Secretary of the County Public Service Board has
never reported to the County Assembly through a
report on the extent to which the values and
principles referred to in Articles 10 and 232 are
complied in the County Assembly. This is
according to Section 59(1)(f) of the County Governments
Act, 2012.This is violation of the
Constitution.
Honorable Speaker, further aware that, Ms. Cecilia
Mbinya Sereka, a member of the Machakos
County Public Service Board has committed the
following offences-
(a) That Ms. Cecilia Mbinya Sereka did not declare
conflict of interest during a sitting of 6th August,
2020 in the Recruitment and Selection Committee
were her son (Mr. Boniface Mutunkei Sereka)
was an applicant and was later recruited. This
violates Article 73(2) (c) (ii) of the Constitution
on declaration of personal interest that may
conflict with public duties.
(b) That on 5th October, 2021 Ms. Cecilia Mbinya
Sereka convened a Committee meeting under
career progression and the terms of employed of
Mr. Boniface Mutunkei Sereka was changed
from contract to permanent and pensionable. This
also violates Article 73(2)(c)(ii) of the
Constitution on declaration of personal interest
that may conflict with public duties.
(c) That on 17th March, 2021 under minute no.
293/03/2021, the recruitment and selection
Committee deliberated on the matter of appointment
of a driver. This was based on
misrepresentation that the Vice Chairperson was a
PWD (person living with disability). The
committee recommended a personal driver to serve
with the official car allocated to her bye the
Chairman, KBX 810T. The deceitful act was made to
benefit her and facilitate the hiring of yet
another of her sons namely Samson Sereka on Job
group D. This also violates Article 73(2)(c)(ii)
of the Constitution on declaration of personal
interest that may conflict with public duties.
(d) The above appointment was meant to benefit the
Vice Chairperson through appointment of her
son. The said son was not qualified for the
position nor was recruitment competitively done for
the benefit of the said officer. It is also worth
noting that the members of the County Public
Service Board have not been provided with official
vehicles and therefore Motor Vehicle
registration number KBX 810T was simply towed to
the premises to facilitate the appointment
of son to the Vice Chairperson. This is serious
violation of Article 10 and Chapter 6 of the
Constitution of Kenya and gross misconduct
(e) That on
5th October, 2021 Ms. Cecilia Mbinya Sereka convened a meeting under career
progression and gave extraneous allowances to a
group of employees among them the daughter
of the Chairperson of CPSB one Regina Wakio Kioko,
Deputy Sub County Administrator under
job group P Kshs. 25,000 backdated to 1st July,
2021. This had been declined earlier in
December, 2020. This violates Article 73(2)(b) of
the Constitution on objectivity and impartiality
in decision making.
(f) That Ms. Cecilia Mbinya Sereka being the Vice
Chairperson of the County Public Service Board
has never reported to the County Assembly through
a report on the extent to which the values
and principles referred to in Articles 10 and 232
are complied in the County Assembly. This is
according to Section 59(1)(f) of the County
Governments Act, 2012.This is violation of the
Constitution.
Honorable Speaker, further aware that, Ms. Stella
Ndinda Muthoka, a member of the Machakos
County Public Service Board has committed the
following offences-
(a) That Ms. Stella Ndinda Muthoka was the
Chairperson of the recruitment and selection committee
which during a meeting of 26th February 2021
approved appointment of a driver for the Vice
Chairperson (Ms. Cecilia Mbinya Sereka) one Samson
Sereka on Job group D. The position had
not been advertised. Samson Sereka is the son to
Ms. Cecilia Mbinya Sereka hence conflict of
interest. This violates Article 73(2) (c) (ii) of
the Constitution on declaration of personal interest
that may conflict with public duties.
(b) That on 17th March, 2021, chaired by Ms.
Stella Ndinda Muthoka under minute no. 293/03/2021,
the recruitment and selection Committee
deliberated on the matter of appointment of a driver.
This was based on misrepresentation that the Vice
Chairperson was a PWD (person living with
disability). The committee recommended a personal
driver to serve with the official car allocated
to her by the Chairman, KBX 810T. No certificate
from Council of Persons living with disability
was presented to warrant for appointment of a
personal driver. This is a violation of Article 10,
Chapter 6 and Article 232 of the Constitution.
(c) That Ms. Stella Ndinda Muthoka has been
involved in undertakings of the Machakos County
Public Service Board were there was abuse of office,
misappropriation of public funds through;
a. Approval of extraneous allowances for specific
officers yet the officers working on
normal office hours and perform the duties listed
in their appointment letters.
b. Recruitment of officers without following the
right criteria.
c. Promotion of Officers without following the
provisions of the existing laws and circulars.
d. Appointment of Mr. Joseph Wambua as the Deputy
Chief Executive Officer of the
County Public Service Board yet such office does
not exist in the Constitution and the
County Governments Act. This is misuse of public
funds, gross misconduct and violation
of Chapter six of the Constitution.
e. Reinstating four officers claiming that there
was a court order to that effect but none
existed. The said officers had never been in the
County’s payroll and the CECM Public
Service had communicated the same. This
contravenes the provisions of Articles 10 and
232 of the Constitution of Kenya
f. Recruitment of five extra officers against an
advertisement of 21 positions, twenty
Medical Officers and one General Surgeon Kioko.
The advertisement closed on 23rd
May, 2021.After the closure of the exercise four
medical officers and one surgeon were
added to the list making a total of 26. This
violates Article 73(2)(c)(i) of the Constitution
on honesty in execution of public duties.
g. Has never reported to the County Assembly
through a report on the extent to which the
values and principles referred to in Articles 10
and 232 are complied in the County
Assembly. This is violation of the Constitution.
Honorable Speaker, PURSUANT to Article 251(1) of
the Constitution of Kenya, 2010 and Section
58(5) of the County Governments Act, 2012 I wish
to give notice of motion that; this House Resolves
to recommend removal from office by the Governor
of the following;
1. Mr. George Kioko Luka- Chairperson, Machakos
County Public Service Board on the grounds
of serious violation of the Constitution, gross
misconduct and incompetence.
2. Mr. Onesmus Muia Mutisya- Secretary, Machakos
County Public Service Board on the grounds
of serious violation of the Constitution, gross
misconduct and incompetence.
3. Ms. Cecilia Mbinya Sereka- Member, Machakos
County Public Service Board on the grounds
of serious violation of the Constitution and gross
misconduct
4. Ms. Stella Nduku Muthoka- Member, Machakos
County Public Service Board on the grounds
of serious violation of the Constitution and gross
misconduct”
