Kenya Seed Company Managing Director Fred seed company’s employees are from one tribe. Oloibe had a hard time before the Parliamentary Committee on Social Welfare and Agriculture.

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Last Thursday, the committee, chaired by Emmanuel Wangwe, took him to task over alleged tribalism in the parastatal based in Kitale, Trans-Nzoia County.

“The question of ethnicity is a historical one tribe. but we are making progress in addressing it through affirmative action. We also advertise vacancies on national newspapers,” said Mr Oloibe.

Oloibe said he rose through the ranks to be confirmed managing director in 2021.

There were 15 other queries raised by Auditor General Nancy Gathungu in the 2018-2019 finan- cial losses cial year report.

According to the auditor, more than half of the

This, she said, is a breach of legal require- ments for diversity in sharing of jobs in public entities and State-owned firms under Mwon- gozo Code of Conduct.

The report found out that out of 351 perma- nent employees, 202 (58 per cent) are from one

Other audit queries were unconfirmed invest- ment in subsidiaries of the company including Simlaw Seeds Kenya, Kibo Seed Tanzania, Simlaw Seeds Uganda and Kenya Seed Rwanda.

Failure to appoint managing directors and company secretaries for subsidiaries was anoth- er audit query, in addition to unmitigated finan-

There were questions around ownership of land, where parcels measuring 364.99 and 192

acres located in Endebes and valued at Sh186.5 million were not provided for audit.

Missing logbooks, irregular procurement of consultancy of services were also listed among the queries.

Others were long outstanding imprests, irreg ular composition of board of directors, irregular salaries increase by top management and failure to transfer unclaimed dividends amounting to Sh9 million to the Unclaimed Financial Assets Authority.

“We are now well guided and we shall not increase salaries without guidance of Salaries and Remuneration Commission,” said Oloibe.

Wangwe said they had given the MD 14 days to provide the company’s organogram, the occu pancy and positions details in terms of ethnicity.

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