By Gideon Keter for the Star
Hiring of parastatal chiefs favours Central Kenya, an audit by the Inspectorate of State Corporations shows.
The region has the highest number of individuals heading parastatals at 157. This accounts for approximately 18 per cent of all board positions.
“Lower Eastern region has the lowest percentage of board positions relative to their population size with four per cent board positions, versus a population size of approximately three million as per the last census,” the report says.
Kiambu, where President Uhuru Kenyatta comes from, has 51 positions. Murang’a and Kirinyaga have 23 and 16 positions, respectively.
Nyandarua county has 11 positions, while Nyeri, the home of former President Mwai Kibaki, has 56 positions. Counties in Mt Kenya East – Meru, Tharaka Nithi and Embu – have 78 positions. Lower Eastern has only 37 board positions.
Meru county has 44 positions, Tharaka Nithi 123, while Embu has 22. The five counties of Northern and Northeastern Kenya have 47 board positions, accounting for five per cent.
Coast has 66 positions in the approximately 876 board positions.
Garissa has 12 positions, Wajir 13, Mandera 12, Marsabit four and Isiolo county has six positions.
Kilifi, in Coast, has the highest number at 23 positions, followed closely by Mombasa, which has16 positions.
Kwale has nine, while Tana River, Lamu and Taita Taveta have four, nine and five positions respectively.
The six counties in North Rift – Turkana, West Pokot, Samburu, Trans Nzoia, Uasin Gishu and Elgeyo Marakwet – all have a total of 77 positions. Nakuru, Baringo, Nandi and Laikipia have 88 positions.
Turkana county has 11 positions, West Pokot 10, Samburu 15, Trans Nzoia 14, Uasin Gishu 22, Elgeyo Marakwet five, Nandi 30, Baringo 21, Laikipia five, Nakuru 32, Narok 19, Kajiado 17, Kericho 25 and Bomet seven.
Counties in Western – Bungoma, Busia, Kakamega and Vihiga – have 90 positions. Nyanza counties – Kisumu, Siaya, Homa Bay and Migori – have 82 position.
Kisii and Nyamira counties have a total of 52 positions, while Nairobi has 34.
Mvita MP Abdulswamad Nassir urged the President to act on the report immediately and ensure there is equitable distribution of the powerful positions.
He said the absence of substantive CEOs is hurting services.
“There is no fairness and we want to see balance,” Nassir said.
The report presented to the National Assembly’s Public Investment Committee shows that 69 out of 180 corporations have boards that are not fully constituted.
“A total of 30 out of 180 state corporations have acting managing directors, acting CEOs or acting vice chancellors accounting for 17 per cent of all the state corporations,” the says.
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