All 3900 employees of the County Government of Turkana will be required to declare their wealth through the Public Service Board. The responsibility of managing the administration and reporting of the declaration of wealth process in the county is bestowed upon the Public Service Board as a responsible commission. This was recommended by both the Public Service Commission and the EACC of Kenya. The chair of the board’s sub-committee on governance and compliance, Edward Losinyono, has said, ‘The exercise officially begins on Wednesday, November 1, 2023. The teams will be travelling to sub-counties for sensitization and the distribution of forms. In December 2023, the exercise is expected to be completed.’ He added that declaration of wealth is a statutory requirement as outlined by the Public Officers Ethics Act (POEA) 2003, the Leadership and Integrity Act 2016 (LIA), and Articles 10 and 232 of the Constitution of Kenya 2010. Losinyono continued to say, ‘The sensitization and form distribution will be done for 10 days, from November 1st to November 10th, 2023, in the sub-counties. The selected locations earmarked for the exercise include health facilities, ward administrators’ offices, and other strategic locations. The chair of the committee has called on all staff to comply to avoid the dire consequences of non-compliance. Later, the final report will be submitted to the EACC and the Public Service Commission. During the last wealth declaration exercise in 2021, Losinyono confirmed 321 employees were non-compliant, and he said their names were submitted to the relevant authorities for necessary action. The human resources personnel in charge of the board, Joseph Ngatotin, revealed that the plans to undertake the sensitization and distribution of the forms are ready. He said the board will reach out to all employees in the county headquarters, sub-county, and all the wards across the county. Ngatotin stated that the board has already equipped its staff with the necessary knowledge to guide them through the process and help them fill out the forms correctly. He clarified that the forms will require staff to explain their income, assets, and liabilities over the last two years.
Source: Kenya News Agency