County administrators urged to uphold integrity

By Peter Ochieng

Bungoma governor Kenneth Lusaka wants county administrators to uphold integrity and work ethics, so as to effectively serve members of the public.

Speaking at Mabanga Agricultural Training Centre (ATC) during his installation as the Head of County Administration and Enforcement, Lusaka urged the administrators not to use excess force in the execution of their duties.

“I urge you not to use excessive force in the execution of your duties. Anyone found humiliating residents will face the full force of the law,” warned the governor.

He took the officers down memory lane of his days as an administrator, in the now defunct provincial administration system.

“As you know, I used to do administration work. From 1989, I used to put on the administrator’s uniform until 2009 when I left as District Commissioner and headed to the office of the president to serve as in charge of provincial administration. This uniform reminds me of the work I did, and I am sure most of you did not recognize me when I came, because I looked different,” he said.

The governor disclosed that his cabinet is in the final stages of fine tuning a policy for the scheme of service for county administration officers.

Upon completion, he said it will be forwarded to the County Assembly for approval. “We will be finalizing the scheme of service in our next cabinet meeting which will go a long way in boosting the morale of our officers in the execution of their duties.”

The former Senate Speaker reiterated his administrator’s resolve to fight the teen pregnancies menace, in the county. He said he has scheduled a consultative meeting with key stakeholders on Tuesday January 16, 2024 at Lugulu Girls, in order to chart a proper way forward.

On his part, Tony Barasa, chairperson of the Bungoma County Assembly’s public administration committee urged the governor and other leaders present, not to forget about the plight of village administrators.

“We have administrators missing something, and these are village administrators. They don’t have ceremonial attires.”

Deputy Governor Janepher Mbatiany, County Secretary William Nasong'o and County Police Commander Francis Kooli were among those present.