Siaya MCAs probe sacking of 259 ‘ghost’ health workers

The Siaya County Assembly has launched investigations into claims of unfair dismissal and non-payment of hundreds of healthcare workers, following a petition presented to the house on Monday.

The 259 healthcare workers allege they were recruited by the County Public Service Board in January and deployed to various health facilities across Siaya, where they worked for eight months without pay.

In the petition dated September 15 and which was signed by representatives Brian Ochieng’, Felix Omondi and Emily Anyango, the workers said they were abruptly dismissed on September 11.

County authorities branded them as “ghost workers” and accused them of possessing “fake employment documents,” they said. 

Out of 502 recruits, 382 were struck off the payroll, while only 120 were retained.

The petitioners argue they had undergone two separate verification exercises conducted by the county government earlier in the year, where they were confirmed as duly posted and serving in their respective stations.

Despite this, they were dismissed without notice and have not received any form of remuneration for the period they served.

They accuse the county government of violating their rights under Articles 27, 28, 41 and 47 of the Constitution of Kenya, 2010, which guarantee equality, dignity, fair labour practices and fair administrative action.

In their plea to the assembly, the petitioners requested intervention to compel the Health CEC and the County Public Service Board to produce official records of recruitment and verification exercises.

They also want the county to reinstate the affected healthcare workers or provide lawful justification for their dismissal and to pay all outstanding salaries and allowances for the eight months worked.

In his communication to the assembly on Tuesday, speaker George Okode acknowledged the petition, noting its significance as a matter of immense public interest.

“The matters raised cut across the mandates of the committee on Health services and the committee on Governance and administration. However, due to its emergent nature and immense public interest, I commit it to the committee on General oversight for consideration,” Okode said.

The committee on General oversight has been directed to investigate the circumstances surrounding the recruitment, deployment, verification and eventual dismissal of the workers.

It will also be required to establish the authenticity of employment documents such as offer letters, appointment letters, deployment notices and arrival reports.

As part of the process, the assembly has ordered that all petitioners be individually invited through a public notice to present their employment documents for verification within seven days.

They will also be subjected to an interrogation process before the committee, alongside relevant county government officials.

“It's in the public domain that whereas the petitioners are alleging that they were unfairly dismissed, the county executive alleged that the petitioners got into the county public service fraudulently. It is in this regard that I have provided the guidelines with a view to protect the rights of the petitioners in case such right could have been infringed and protect public interest in the instance where employment may have been secured through fraudulent means,” the speaker said. 

The committee is expected to table its report within 30 days, with recommendations to the assembly for further action.

Okode cautioned members of the assembly to strictly adhere to Section 11 of the Conflict of Interest Act, 2025, to preserve the integrity of the investigation.

He also advised the county executive to suspend any further administrative action against the affected workers until the assembly completes its probe.

The petition has sparked anxiety among health sector stakeholders and residents, with fears that the dismissal of over 380 healthcare workers could paralyse service delivery in an already strained system.

Observers note that the outcome of the assembly’s investigation will be a critical test of accountability in the county public service, with potential ripple effects on future recruitment and employment practices.