KRA, Kenya Power bosses among 17 agency heads summoned over non-compliance of eCitizen payments

Secretary to the Cabinet, Mercy Wanjau. [Denis Kibuchi, Standard]

The government has summoned the heads and management of 17 State agencies over failure to comply with the presidential directive on eCitizen payments.

The Principal Secretaries, Chief Executive Officers, and Board Chairpersons will next week on Tuesday, November 14 explain why they are 'frustrating' the eCitizen payment process, by allegedly advertising unofficial payment channels.

Among heads of State agencies summoned include the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), Kenya Power, National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF), Kenyatta National Hospital, Kenya National Examination Council (KNEC), the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS), Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) and Kenya Railways Corporation.

Others are heads of the Higher Education Loans Board, the Hustler Fund, the National Cereals and Produce Board, the National Aids Control Council, and the Mathari Referral and Teaching Hospital, among others.

"Following conversations that have happened, these state corporations have been invited for a meeting on Tuesday, to be attended by the CEO, the Chair of the board, and the PS who is the accounting officer," Secretary to the Cabinet, Mercy Wanjau noted.

Wanjau has accused some of the agencies of frustrating revenue collection and transparency by defying President William Ruto's directive to migrate all services online and payments to 222222 as the official Paybill by December 31.

She alleges that the agencies have instead maintained separate bank accounts and introduced alternative payment channels.

"If you want to use 222222 but meanwhile encourage payments to alternative platforms, what are you saying?" she posed.

Yesterday, the government threatened to sack CEOs of State agencies for failing to declare revenues collected on the eCitizen platform.

Immigration and Citizen Services Principal Secretary Julius Bitok said that they have noted a variance between the collected revenue and what has been reflected on eCitizen.

Ruto issued the directive on June 30 this year directing all government agencies to stop processing payments through the existing pay bills and start processing them via the official government Paybill 222222.