The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has listed the major forms of corruption and unethical practices among civil servants working at the national and county government.
In a speech, EACC CEO Twalib Mbarak singled out Human Resource Management as one of the high corruption risk areas in Kenya’s public service, at both levels of government.
“Other high-risk areas include financial management, public procurement, and project implementation,” he said.
To begin with, the Commission listed irregular extension of contracts and retention of retired civil servants in the payroll as some of the major forms of corruption.
Further, the other major forms are nepotism and favoritism, conflict of interest and double employment.
“The Commission has received about 324 reports touching on irregular employment out of which 204 have been taken up for investigations and 46 referred to various organizations for action,” said EACC.
Also, the Commission identified skewed advertisements and manipulation of qualifications to suit pre-determined recruitment decisions as another pattern of graft.
Biased criteria for recruitment, promotions, and training are also a scheme used by HRM practitioners.
“143 investigations on irregular recruitment have been finalized with recommendations for prosecution and administrative action such as recovery of lost funds and dismissal from employment,” said EACC.
Additionally, the Commission also included leakage of confidential information, for instance, interview questions, job requirements in its list.
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More Forms of Corruption among Civil Servants
Furthermore, the Commission named lack of segregation of duties in the opening of job applications, shortlisting and interviews as required as one of the forms of corruption in government.
Outright bribery in the recruitment process and abuse of office by civil servants were also on the list.
In addition to the ones named above, the other forms listed by EACC were
1.Payments for work not done- arising from leaves, absenteeism cases that are not reported or accounted for.
2.Payroll fraud- siphoning public funds through ghost workers who channel the funds or part of it to their masters.
3.Total disregard of employment procedures- e.g. recruitment without any competitive process/ no advertisements 15. Forgery of academic certificates or personation of persons named in certificates.
4.Tampering with the HR records- an employee’s documents are plucked off from files or crucial documents not filed. eg forged certificates, disciplinary records, and sexual harassment reports.
Extent of Corruption in HRM- EACC
EACC said corruption in HRM has a direct adverse effect on institutional performance and is a major contributor to accountability shortfalls in the public service.
According to the Commission, human capital is the most valued asset in any organization because even with new technological advancements, the role of the human interface remains critical.
“Corruption, if not prevented, can be entrenched and institutionalized in the procedures, systems, and policies of an organization thus hindering institutional growth and stability,” read the statement.
Further, EACC revealed that the reports it has processed so far indicate that corruption has permeated most functional areas in HRM.
“The most affected areas include human resource planning, payroll management, recruitment and selection, placement, deployment, and transfers, training and development, performance management, management of career progression and rewards/Compensation and staff motivation,” noted the Commission.
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HRM Conference
EACC made a presentation at the 27th Annual National Conference for Human Resource Management (HRM) practitioners at Sawela Lodge in Naivasha.
It engaged the HRM practitioners on the nature and extent of corruption and unethical practices in their functional areas.
The Conference, organized by the Institute of Human Resource Management (IHRM) and was officially opened by the Head of Public Service Felix Koskei.
“The Commission expects professional bodies such as IHRM to intensify enforcement of professional standards among their members to complement the efforts of EACC,” said the Commission.
Also, the Commission said the country is witnessing an upsurge in cases of unqualified persons masquerading as professionals in diverse fields adding that this should raise an alarm to various professional bodies.
