KEMRI Staff Want Promotions Stopped Saying They Favor Managements Cronies

Staff at the Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI) have called on Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe to intervene and have promotions slated for Wednesday 3rd August stopped.

They called on the CS to disband the KEMRI Board and the top management saying they are incompetent.
The staff said the promotions are in violation of the law.

They also demand that the earlier 30 staff recommended for promotion be issued with their letters of promotion with no further delay.

They said a year ago, they were interviewed by the Board of Directors who recommended the promotion of 30 of them but the PS Health Susan Mochache ordered the Board to re- advertise the jobs and start afresh.

The affected staff who were due to be promoted, said some of them are being locked out yet they have been in the same job groups for the last 20 years.

They complained that the Wednesday exercise is meant to reward the managements cronies and that some with high qualifications like Masters Degrees have been omitted to favor specific people.

They accused KEMRI acting Head of Corporate Services Antony Wachira of frustrating and interfering with the process.
But Wachira said a committee made up of both Senior KEMRI staff and Public Service Commission met and shortlisted candidates for the position of KMR3 and KMR4 who are administrative and technical staff.

“Just like any outcome of any process, a number of staff were not happy with the outcome of the process because they were not shortlisted. The staff were advised to put in appeals letters for consideration by the Board next week where this will be given serious consideration,” Wachira said.

He added that they will meet the affected staff on Monday with the Director General to listen to their grievances.
“And if possible a review of the appeal cases” he said.

KEMRI CEO Sam Kariuki said short listing is done by committees and not individuals and anyone aggrieved can appeal.
“There are Board channels to do that. Certainly the board will listen,” he said.

Last year, the employees sued Health PS Susan Mochache for acting ultra vires after she formed an in-house team to audit the promotions made by the Board of Directors.

They also sued the KEMRI Board for accepting to implement ultra vires directives given by the Health PS.
They said they are angered that promotions duly implemented by the Board have irregularly and unlawfully been set aside by the PS.

The staff added that the impugned repeat exercise is so tainted with violations of the law, including the Constitution, that it must be called out and stopped.