Ruku urges action on ghost workers in public service

Kenya has intensified efforts to strengthen accountability and eliminate inefficiencies in public service, with Cabinet Secretary for Public Service, Human Capital Development and Special Programmes, Geoffrey Ruku, calling on human resource professionals to play a central role in transforming governance and protecting public resources.

Speaking during the closing ceremony of the 12th Annual National Human Resource Management Congress in Mombasa, Ruku challenged HR practitioners to lead reforms aimed at improving efficiency, promoting integrity and addressing long-standing weaknesses in public institutions.

The congress brought together HR professionals, business leaders and policymakers under the theme: “The Future is Accountability: Driving Human Capital Excellence for Sustainable Impact.”

Ruku said human resource professionals remain critical in shaping workplace culture and ensuring institutions operate effectively and ethically.

“The Government assures you of its full support. We recognise that HR professionals are central to shaping organisational culture, enforcing compliance, and ensuring that our workforce remains motivated, skilled, and accountable,” said Ruku.

He noted that despite progress made in public service reforms, significant challenges continue to affect institutions across the country.

“As I have travelled across the country engaging with institutions, I have witnessed both the promise and the challenges of our public service. The issues reported in the media — inefficiency, weak accountability systems, favouritism, and gaps in succession planning — are real, and they demand urgent solutions,” he said.

The Cabinet Secretary urged HR leaders to strengthen systems governing recruitment, employee development and performance management, arguing that stronger institutions would contribute significantly to national development.

He called for the streamlining of key HR functions, including recruitment, compensation, compliance, employee relations and workforce planning.

“It is here that I challenge you, as HR leaders, to champion the transformation our nation needs,” Ruku told participants.

The CS said accountability must be embedded within organisational systems and structures if Kenya is to build sustainable institutions and maintain public confidence.

“If we embed accountability into our HR systems, we will strengthen trust in public institutions, enhance productivity and position our nation for sustainable growth,” he said.

Ruku also raised concerns over the growing public wage bill, warning that payroll leakages continue to burden taxpayers and divert resources from development priorities.

He said salaries paid through irregular or fraudulent means directly undermine service delivery and reduce government capacity to invest in key sectors.

“The salaries and allowances we pay are not abstract figures on a ledger; they are a sacred claim on the sweat of the Kenyan taxpayer,” Ruku said.

He warned that practices such as ghost workers, duplicate payroll entries and irregular allowances have continued to weaken financial discipline within public institutions.

“Every shilling lost to fraud is a classroom left unbuilt, a clinic left unstaffed, and a road left unfinished,” he said.

The Cabinet Secretary described payroll fraud as more than an administrative issue, calling it a direct theft of public funds and a betrayal of taxpayers.

“These are not victimless inefficiencies. They are thieves and you, as the custodians of our human capital records, are the first and most important line of defense against them,” he said.

Ruku urged HR officers to move beyond periodic audits and instead institutionalise continuous payroll monitoring and verification mechanisms.

He proposed the use of biometric verification systems, regular headcount exercises and integration of payroll systems capable of detecting irregularities in real time.

“Let us institutionalise rigorous headcount and biometric verification, reconcile our payrolls against verified staff establishments, and ensure that no name enters the system without a face, a file and a function behind it,” he said.

He also called for stronger whistleblower protection and a culture where irregularities are reported without fear.

“The technology exists; the policies exist; what remains is the courage and the conscience to apply them without fear or favour,” he added.

As the congress concluded, Ruku urged HR practitioners to sustain the momentum generated during the forum and translate discussions into practical action within their institutions.

He said the future of Kenya’s development agenda would largely depend on how effectively the country manages its human capital and strengthens accountability across public service structures.