The Auditor General’s report has raised concerns regarding the Judiciary’s workforce, revealing that the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) could not account for 2,180 new employees in the 2023/2024 fiscal year.
According to the report, the JSC had a total of 8,330 employees as of June 30, 2024, which is an increase of 2,316 workers from the previous year. However, the documentation for these new workers was incomplete.
The report highlighted that only 136 new contracts were documented, leaving a discrepancy of 2,180 workers who were not accounted for.
“The Judiciary had a total of 8,330 employees as of June 30, 2024, compared to 6,014 employees on June 30, 2023, showing an increase of 2,316 employees during the year,” the report stated.
“However, the new contracts documented were only 136, leading to a mismatch of 2,180 employees whose presence was not supported by proper records,” the report further explained.
In addition to the discrepancies in staffing, the report pointed out several issues with the JSC’s financial management.
It was revealed that the JSC spent Ksh14 billion on employee payments throughout the year, with Ksh4 billion of that amount allocated for personal allowances as part of salaries.
Despite this, the JSC failed to provide sufficient documentation to support the payment of personal allowances totaling Ksh182 million, as well as leave allowances amounting to Ksh131 million.
“The personal allowances of Ksh182,390,324 and leave allowances of Ksh131,318,155 were not supported by ledger or payroll analysis,” the Auditor-General’s report indicated.
The report also highlighted concerns with training expenses within the JSC. It was revealed that the commission spent Ksh55 million on training within the country, but failed to provide the necessary documentation to support these expenditures.
The spending of Ksh55,298,426 on training was not backed by an approved training plan, a training needs assessment, or a list of employees nominated for the training, the report stated.
Moreover, the report uncovered irregularities regarding foreign travel expenses. The JSC spent Ksh93 million on foreign travel and training, but the auditor could not verify whether these expenditures were valid due to lack of documentation.
These findings from the Auditor-General’s report have raised significant concerns about the management and transparency within the Judicial Service Commission, especially in relation to staffing and financial accountability.
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