CAPTION: Signboard at KALRO Headquarters in Loresho, along Kaptagat Road, off Waiyaki Way, Nairobi Close to a month after this blog embarked on a mini-series of articles targeting ongoing evils at the Kenya Agricultural Research and Livestock Organization (KALRO), there seems to be no hope in sight for the hundreds of suffering staffers who continue to cry out for justice.
Over the past few weeks, we have extensively highlighted a long list of administrative injustices raised by employees working at the state-funded institute. Staff Expose Glaring Administrative Injustices At KALRO Discrimination Of Drivers At KALRO KALRO Staff Petition Senate Over Crooked Promotions ‘My Father Never Earned Promotion Despite Years Of Service To KALRO’ – Victims Unearth More Dirt At Troubled State Organization Suffering KALRO Staff Write To Agriculture CS Peter Munya KALRO Naivasha Research Centre Misusing Attached Undergraduates Most recently, as many local media outlets ignored the situation, we reported how a section of disgruntled KALRO staff petitioned the Senate over crooked promotions .
In the letter addressed to the Chairperson of the Senate Agricultural Committee hardly a week ago, the workers requested the upper house to urgently find a way to launch an official probe into the allegations and immediately offer guidance on the way forward.
Exercising their rights through Article 37 of the constitution, they additionally requested that if possible, the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) be brought into the fray.
A week later, they took their fight to the Ministry of Agriculture Livestock Fisheries and Cooperatives. In an open letter to Cabinet Secretary Peter Munya , they have protested underlying mistreatment and irregular employment practices at the corporation.
This time around, heavy dissatisfaction has been expressed in certain quarters of the poorly run state corporation.
Speaking to us exclusively via secure electronic mail, an insider within KALRO divuged how the organization has been frustrating workers; first by deliberately altering their payslips before proceeding to hold them against their wish.
Staffers were reportedly left puzzled when their February payslips arrived with multiple irregularities like missing shares amount and non-uniform loan balances.
Other minor but costly errors ranged from date of birth, personal numbers, NHIF and NSSF remitances.
For the following months of March and April, and now May, they are yet to be handed their payslips. "Dear Cyprian Nyakundi Now that you are our only remaining public saviour, please help us address these problems. I am a humble public servant who has worked for KALRO for many years. I am set to retire in under one year. The organization I have worked for over 30 years has failed to give us our payslips. The February 2022 payslip was messed up. The shares amount was missing, loan balances missing for others while some staff loans had been double. The errors were so many ranging from, date of birth, personal numbers, cooperative shares, NHIF, NSSF, and loan balances all messed up. We have not received the March and April 2022 Payslips. Why have they bungled the payroll? Are there ghost workers in KALRO? Who will take responsibility for this mess? Why can’t they carry out a forensic Audit on the payroll which will unearth the unethical behaviours? This should be followed by disciplinary action. What is wrong with this organization?" the source writes.