The National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) bosses have been ordered to immediately cancel the contracts of 22 newly hired staff after the uncovering of irregularities during the commission's recent recruitment process.
In a directive on Monday, November 17, the Senate Standing Committee on National Cohesion, Equal Opportunity and Regional Integration noted that the positions were never advertised, making the hiring a violation of the law.
The order followed a tense session where the NCIC officials were grilled over inconsistencies in their explanations.
Contradictions emerged when the NCIC CEO and the commission's Human Resources department gave varying accounts of why the agency intended to hire 20 people but ended up recruiting 22.
Committee chair Senator Catherine Mumma described the hiring as unlawful and contrary to the law, insisting that deviation from the initial plan of hiring 20 workers needed to be supported by documented resolutions.
The contradictions raised serious integrity concerns, with the NCIC CEO being warned against succumbing to external pressure since he would be held personally liable if he were found culpable.
After the heated session, the committee further summoned NCIC commissioners to appear before them on Tuesday to explain how the irregular recruitment took place and why the commission has contradicting statements regarding the process.
The recruitment controversy overshadowed earlier discussions, where the NCIC and the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) were openly questioned about what was being done to address the rampant cases of inflammatory remarks being made by political figures. These remarks, according to the committee, had the potential to cause unrest in the country.
KNCHR, led by CEO Bernard Mogesa, particularly had a hard time demonstrating how they were curbing hate speech by influential political leaders in rallies and especially in churches.
Senator Mumma pressed the commission to demonstrate any tangible repercussions on politicians, noting that some well-known political figures were on the rampage with inflammatory remarks without action. Moges, however, insisted that both politicians and ordinary citizens were on the commissions' radar.
Lamu Senator Kamau Gituku also pressed for clarity on how the commission was monitoring, regulating and deterring the spread of hate speech, with the NCIC insisting that there were enhanced investigations and more summons were being issued to offenders.
The commission also revealed there was increased monitoring on social media and public gatherings since the 2022 General Election.
