{"id":110524,"date":"2025-02-17T09:04:22","date_gmt":"2025-02-17T09:04:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/index.php\/2025\/02\/17\/mps-warn-against-favoritism-in-sha-staff-recruitment\/"},"modified":"2025-02-17T09:04:22","modified_gmt":"2025-02-17T09:04:22","slug":"mps-warn-against-favoritism-in-sha-staff-recruitment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/mps-warn-against-favoritism-in-sha-staff-recruitment\/","title":{"rendered":"MPs warn against favoritism in SHA staff recruitment"},"content":{"rendered":"

NAIROBI, Kenya Feb 17- Members of Parliament have issued a stern warning to the State Department for Medical Services and the Social Health Authority (SHA) Board, stressing the need for a fair and transparent recruitment process at the newly established agency.<\/strong><\/p>\n

This follows the Public Service Commission (PSC) approval of a staff establishment of 800 at the Social Health Authority (SHA), significantly lower than the 1,750 personnel inherited from the now-defunct National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF).<\/p>\n

Endebess MP Robert Pukose, who chairs the National Assembly Committee on Health, stated that reports of favoritism and victimization in the hiring process will not be tolerated.<\/p>\n

Speaking during a committee session on SHA\u2019s implementation team, Pukose emphasized that transparency and merit-based recruitment are essential for the agency\u2019s success, warning that any attempts to manipulate the process would not be tolerated.<\/p>\n

He cautioned that the committee would not hesitate to launch an inquiry into the transition from the now-defunct National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) to SHA if evidence of irregularities in staff recruitment emerged.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want to caution the Principal Secretary and the the Social Health Authority (SHA) Board of management that any form of favoritism, intimidation, or victimization in the recruitment process could prompt this committee to initiate an inquiry into the transition process,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n

The MP further pointed out that a flawed hiring process could compromise the agency\u2019s effectiveness, ultimately affecting Kenyans\u2019 quality of healthcare services.<\/p>\n

He stressed the need for a professional and independent recruitment process to avoid past mistakes where public institutions became avenues for political patronage.<\/p>\n

Pukose underscored the importance of SHA\u2019s independence, saying that the agency must not repeat the mistakes of NHIF, where politically connected individuals were appointed to key positions at the expense of qualified professionals.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe must manage this transition professionally and ensure it serves its intended purpose. Moving from NHIF to SHA is a critical process, and we need to be extremely careful. If it reaches a point where an inquiry is necessary, it could open up serious issues,\u201d he warned.<\/p>\n

The legislator also emphasized that SHA\u2019s leadership including recruitment of the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) must be carefully selected to ensure the institution runs efficiently and delivers on its mandate to provide affordable and accessible healthcare to Kenyans.<\/p>\n

Pukose called on the SHA Board to take its oversight role seriously by ensuring that all recruitment and staffing processes adhere to the law.<\/p>\n

He reminded them that the transition clause in the SHA Act must be followed to the letter, guaranteeing fairness and professionalism.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe law is very clear on the transition process, and we must follow it to the letter. Recruitment should be conducted strictly within legal provisions, with merit as the guiding principle,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The committee\u2019s concerns come amid growing scrutiny over SHA\u2019s implementation, with stakeholders raising alarm over delays, staffing challenges, and concerns about service delivery under the new scheme.<\/p>\n

NHIF staff retention<\/h2>\n

Lawmakers argue that some of the challenges facing SHA\u2019s implementation stem from the demoralization and undervaluation of NHIF staff, who were seconded to the new agency on a contract basis.<\/p>\n

They further argued that the situation is exacerbated by the fact that all SHA staff are on six-month contracts, while the top management serves in an acting capacity.<\/p>\n

Led by Mogotio MP, Reuben Kiborek, \u00a0noted that SHA staff are highly demoralized\u2014not due to a lack of commitment, but because of how they were treated during the transition from NHIF to SHA.<\/p>\n

He claimed that they were made to feel as though their services were neither wanted nor required.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe challenges at the agency are more about the people than the systems. That patriotic spirit\u2014the drive to go above and beyond in serving Kenyans\u2014no longer exists, and this stems from leadership, from the top down,\u201d said Kiborek.<\/p>\n

Kiborek urged the SHA board to fast-track the recruitment of a substantive Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and other key personnel to ensure effective leadership and decision-making at the agency.<\/p>\n

He stressed that having a permanent officeholder is crucial for making bold, sometimes unpopular, decisions necessary to streamline SHA\u2019s operations and enhance service delivery to Kenyans.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome decisions may be unpopular, and some may involve risks. That is why we need a substantive CEO\u2014someone who is not constantly worried about job security but focused on making the tough calls needed to make SHA work.,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Kilgoris MP Julius Sunkuli, argued that the existing NHIF staff should automatically be considered part of SHA, with only those deemed unnecessary being phased out.<\/p>\n

He emphasized that the transition cannot succeed without retaining experiencedpersonnel from the defunct NHIF.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need a clear explanation on how you intend to handle the current staff,\u201dSunkuli demanded.<\/p>\n

Kitutu Chache South MP Anthony Kibagendi, echoed similar sentiments, cautioning against a blanket condemnation of NHIF employees.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe could blacklist problematic sections and conduct fresh interviews where necessary, but all other staff should transition seamlessly. It would be unfair to punish everyone for the mistakes of a few,\u201d he stated.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

NAIROBI, Kenya Feb 17- Members of Parliament have issued a stern warning to the State Department for Medical Services and the Social Health Authority (SHA) Board, stressing the need for a fair and transparent recruitment process at the newly established agency. This follows the Public Service Commission (PSC) approval of a staff establishment of 800 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-110524","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","entry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110524","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=110524"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110524\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=110524"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=110524"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=110524"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}