Eldoret ‘Overseas Jobs’ Scandal Probe After Uasin Gishu Finland Saga
Emotional parents and their children described their ordeal with a failed overseas employment initiative, which has since encountered challenges.
After the Uasin Gishu Finland saga, the employment program is the second initiative deemed dubious. On Thursday, parents recounted how they lost vast sums of money to a recruitment agency, First Choice Recruitment and Consultancy, which allegedly collected millions of shillings to connect youth with employment opportunities in Qatar.
The victims told the Senate Committee on Labor and Social Welfare that the agency had guaranteed them thousands of jobs related to Qatar’s 2022 World Cup.
Eight months after the conclusion of the World Cup, the victims had not traveled despite having paid between Sh40,000 and Sh400,000 for contract employment in the Gulf.
Others informed the West Pokot Senator Julius Murgor-led committee that they had received employment promises from the United Kingdom and Poland in exchange for payment.
The Senate committee was informed that the recruitment agency had amassed more than Sh400 million from distressed young people seeking employment overseas.
Eliud Kipsang, who resigned from the Kenya Ports Authority after being assured a lucrative position as a cashier in Qatar, wept multiple times as he described his experience.
He claimed that he was persuaded after viewing the launch of the overseas employment program on television.
Kipsang stated that his conviction in the authenticity of the opportunity stemmed from its endorsement by notable figures, including a Cabinet Secretary, a governor, and a renowned businessman from Nandi.
He recounted his journey from Mombasa to Eldoret, where he willingly paid Sh40,000 with the intention of securing a job for his unemployed sister.
The prospect of finally providing employment for his sister, who had been grappling with joblessness for an extended period, fueled his decision.
After convincing his 74-year-old mother to sell her only bovine, he paid the money in May 2021 and was scheduled to begin working in Qatar in the middle of the previous year.
Upon reaching the premises of First Choice Recruitment and Consultancy, located in Eldoret town, Kipsang recounted his experience.
He encountered Judy Jepchirchir, the CEO, who inquired about his current employment status and monthly earnings. Kipsang informed her that he was employed at KPA and receiving a monthly salary of Sh25,000.
Kipsang recounted that he was encouraged by the CEO to make an additional payment of Sh40,000 in order to secure employment in Qatar.
According to him, the CEO assured him that working in Qatar would yield higher earnings. Subsequently, Kipsang mentioned that he underwent multiple interviews, which necessitated substantial expenditures for travel from Mombasa to Eldoret.
When Kipsang could not afford transportation to Eldoret for an interview, the CEO urged him to resign from KPA and apply for a cashier position in Qatar, according to Kipsang.
Following his resignation and subsequent relocation to Eldoret in anticipation of his impending journey to Qatar, he found himself in a state of uncertainty.
Initially instructed to prepare for travel on May 16 of the previous year, this departure date was rescheduled to July. Regrettably, the trip was further deferred without a set timeframe.
He approached Jepchirchir for clarification because these continual postponements were perplexing. To his dismay, he was informed that the postponements were attributed to the national elections scheduled for August.
He continued, “I am still at home, unemployed, and destitute. “We have demanded refunds, but the company has not yet paid.”
Grace Korir, a parent, stated that she paid Sh250,000 to a recruitment agency in April 2012 for her son to secure a position in Qatar, but was shocked when the agency failed to fulfill its promise.
The widow stated that she spent all of her money seeking a better existence for her son.
Resla Makhoa, a street vendor, stated, “I borrowed Sh400,000 so that my son could find employment in Qatar.” It has been two years since I made the payment. My son visited the agency’s offices and was attacked by thugs.”
A report by an ad hoc committee of the Uasin Gishu assembly, chaired by Gilbert Chepkong’a, discovered that 10,000 youth from the county and neighboring Nandi paid money to the agency, but fewer than 100 obtained employment.
The assembly report was received by the Senate committee.
Senator Murgor stated that the committee will retreat in order to write a report that will be presented to the Senate.
“As a committee, we understand your plight. You have our backing. We had not heeded the advice of parents and students. “Whatever occurred was unacceptable,” said the chairman of the committee.
Eldoret ‘Overseas Jobs’ Scandal Probe After Uasin Gishu Finland Saga