A journalist has filed a lawsuit against the Public Service Commission for excluding inexperienced Kenyans from the position of Principal Secretary.
Albert Nyakundi has accused the commission and its CEO, Simon Rotich, of discrimination.
“The requirement means that applicants who have no experience at all or have experience of between one to nine years professional experience and less than five years in top leadership or management are not eligible despite having other relevant qualifications,” says Nyakundi.
He wants the High Court to stop the PSC from conducting interviews until the case is resolved.
On September 7, the PSC advertised for PS positions, requiring applicants to have at least 10 years of relevant experience, five of which must have been in leadership or top management.
The Kenya Revenue Authority, Higher Education Loans Board, Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission, Directorate of Criminal Investigations, and a registered Credit Reference Bureau were also required by the agency.
However, Nyakundi claims this is unconstitutional and violates labor laws, prohibiting job applicants from being screened for clearance before being hired.
“PSC should not be lazy. They should initiate independent investigations of applicants after receiving their data and after formal employment. Any attempts to delegate that to EACC and DCI, among others, is an exercise in futility and is just hot air,” he says.
According to Nyakundi, the PSC also failed to specify the number of available positions, implying that they already had preferred candidates and were only subjecting job seekers to a wild goose chase.
He says that the advertisement gave an unfair advantage to serving PSs, who will be given preference during interviews.
The journalist claims that the PSC usurped President William Ruto’s powers.
“The commission can only give requirements for application for the post of a Principal Secretary because the appointment of a PS is a preserve of the president. The president’s decision on who to hire cannot be determined by PSC,” he claims in the suit papers.
According to Nyakundi, the commission illegally extended the application deadline from September 20 to September 27 without providing a reason. He claims they intended to give their preferred candidates who had not applied a chance.
He wants the court to declare the PSC Regulations of 2020 unconstitutional because they give the commission authority to hire State officers, which should be reserved for the president.
