Public Service Cabinet Secretary Geoffrey Ruku has ordered 84 human resources officers to surrender their access to government payroll systems and take mandatory 30-day leave as investigations into suspected irregular salary transactions continue.
The officers are under investigation following concerns raised by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) over payroll transactions involving the Ministry of Health, Kenya Police Service and Kenya Prisons Service.
In a statement issued on Friday, October 16, Ruku said the decision was intended to give investigators time to carry out further checks and establish whether public funds had been lost through irregular payments.
“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 and the implementation of mandatory 30-day leave to allow further forensic investigations of the identified irregular transactions that have potentially led to loss of public funds,” the CS stated.
Ruku said new human resources officers would immediately take over payroll management in the affected institutions to ensure that salary processing continues as investigations proceed.
He added that the government would take further action against officers found responsible for any wrongdoing once the investigations are complete.
The move is part of wider government efforts to address suspected payroll fraud across ministries, departments, agencies and state corporations. Earlier investigations had raised concerns about weaknesses in the systems used to manage public servants’ salaries and the possible loss of public money through irregular transactions.
A forensic audit presented to the government identified suspected irregularities amounting to Ksh6.2 billion in 12 of the 53 state departments examined.
The audit pointed to several concerns, including unauthorised changes to payroll records, irregular salary payments, weaknesses in the management of statutory deductions and gaps in oversight.
Following the findings, the Cabinet directed the DCI to investigate the suspected fraud, verify the personal numbers used in payroll processing and pursue those found responsible in accordance with the law.
The government also ordered ministries, departments, agencies and state corporations to migrate to the Human Resource Information System (HRIS), which is intended to improve payroll management and strengthen controls over public funds.
In August, the Public Service Commission (PSC) directed government institutions to process salaries exclusively through the official payroll system after concerns emerged over payments made outside the platform.
PSC Chairperson Francis Meja warned human resources managers that they could be held personally accountable if they failed to prevent irregular salary payments.
The latest action also comes as the National Treasury engages the World Bank on reforms linked to government funding. The discussions include efforts to address questionable salary payments, suspected ghost workers and inconsistencies in payroll records across national and county governments.
The government is seeking to improve the accuracy of its payroll records and ensure that public funds are paid to legitimate employees.
The investigations are expected to establish how the suspected irregular transactions occurred, the extent of any financial loss and whether individual officers played a role in the questioned payments.
The mandatory leave and withdrawal of system access are intended to allow the investigations to proceed, while new officers take charge of payroll duties in the affected institutions.
