17 government officials summoned over eCitizen payments
President William Ruto during the launch of e-Citizen services, GavaMkononi app and Gava Express at KICC in Nairobi on June 30. Cabinet has ordered the closure of all existing pay bill numbers and the migration of government services to the eCitizen platform.
A total of 17 CEOs of State agencies including Kenya Revenue Authority, Kenya Power, Kenyatta National Hosptial were summoned to explain their non-compliance with presidential directive on payment for services through eCitizen.
According to Cabinet Secretary Mercy Wanjau, the heads are expected to appear next week to explain their failure to comply with a presidential directive on the payment of services through eCitizen.
Ms Wanjau, who chairs the eCitizen Implementation Committee and convened Tuesday's meeting, said the principal secretaries of the ministries under which the agencies fall, chief executive officers and board chairpersons would attend the meeting.
Speaking in Syokimau on Wednesday, she said the summons was in line with a comply-or-explain letter she issued on 4 August this year.
"Following discussions that have taken place, these state enterprises have been invited to a meeting on Tuesday at 9am and this meeting is to be attended by the CEO, the chairperson of the board and the PS who is the accounting officer," Ms Wanjau said.
The officials summoned are from Kenya Revenue Authority, Kenya Power, Kenya National Examination Council, National Hospital Insurance Fund, Higher Education Loans Board, Hustler Fund and Agricultural Finance Corporation.
The rest are Kenyatta National Hospital, Kenya Bureau of Standards, Kenya Ports Authority, National Cereals and Produce Board, National Aids Control Council, Mathari Referral and Teaching Hospital, Kenya Railways Corporation, Kenya Ferry Services Limited, Kenya National Trading Corporation and Kenya School of Government.
Ms Wanajua also explained that although the agencies were initially granted a temporary exemption from closing their payroll and remitting all payments to 222222 due to their unique services, they were still bound by the December 31 deadline.
"The exemption was based on the premise that, yes, you need time, but you still need to stay on the digitalisation path without disrupting your services."
The directive to use the Single Pay Bill for e-Citizen services was issued by President William Ruto on 30 June during the launch of government services on e-Citizen.
However, the Cabinet Secretary has accused some agencies of frustrating the revenue collection and transparency that the directive was intended to achieve by maintaining separate bank accounts and promoting unofficial payment channels.
