Turkana staff given one month to declare wealth or face payroll suspension

Turkana government has given its employees one month to declare their wealth or risk being removed from the county payroll.

The County Public Service Board has launched the Declaration of Income, Assets and Liabilities exercise—commonly known as wealth declaration—directing all public officers to collect and manually submit their duly filled forms by November 28.

Board chairperson Peter Ingollan Ekunyuk said teams of trained officers have been dispatched to distribute forms and conduct sensitisation sessions across departments and subcounties.

The teams will guide staff on how to accurately fill in their returns and meet the deadline.

Turkana county has more than 4,500 employees.

“All employees must take the exercise seriously and ensure they provide accurate information while filling out the documents,” Ekunyuk said.

He led the inaugural sensitisation session at the county treasury in Lodwar, reminding public officers that wealth declaration is a legal obligation.

“This exercise is a requirement of the law. Everyone must comply or face fines and other penalties as prescribed,” Ekunyuk said.

He outlined a three-phase implementation plan comprising form distribution, collection and verification and analysis.

Each phase, he said, will be accompanied by continuous sensitisation to ensure officers understand what to declare, how to complete the forms correctly and how to submit them.

Ekunyuk disclosed that during the previous exercise, 273 officers failed to comply and were consequently removed from the payroll for several months.

“So far, 45 officers are yet to comply,” he noted, urging full adherence this year.

Principal administrator of the board, Simon Ipoo, cautioned staff to be alert to fraudsters posing as authorised officers during the process.

“Only authorised officers will issue and collect the forms. In the past, unscrupulous individuals have tried to exploit unsuspecting staff. We’ve circulated letters to departments notifying them of the exercise and we urge officers to report any suspicious activity to the board,” he said.

Representing the staff, Collins Nakesio commended the board for conducting an informative session, saying it clarified expectations and improved awareness.

“I believe the sensitised staff are now ready to fill and submit the forms. The chair and his team explained everything very well. As for me, I will submit my form within the week,” he said.

The wealth declaration exercise, conducted every two years, applies to all public officers and requires the disclosure of income, assets and liabilities accumulated during the period.