Siaya County Assembly on the spot for recruiting too many interns

Siaya County Assembly on the spot for recruiting too many interns

Members of civil society organizations in Siaya on Wednesday faulted the county assembly for reportedly recruiting too many interns.

Led by the Executive Director of Community Initiative Action Group (CIAG) Kenya Chris Owala, the civil rights wondered why the county assembly – which has less than 100 employees in total – should have almost 50 interns who also earn on a monthly basis.

Mr. Owala, while addressing the press, questioned the basis for which the recruitment of the interns is usually done saying it has contributed to an overblown wage bill.

Siaya County Assembly Speaker, George Okode, however defended the program saying recruitment of interns only aims at exposing more young people to a working environment.

He added that the internship program also aims at giving the young people experience that would enable them have an advantage while seeking employment in future.

Speaking to Citizen Digital, Mr. Okode further stated that they had not broken any law by recruiting interns since “there is no rule which stipulates the total number of interns required by the assembly at any particular time.”

The Speaker also rubbished the argument that the program eats into money meant for development noting that the interns’ pay comes from funds “sacrificed from part of their recurrent budget which includes the MCAs’ allowances.”

Siaya County assembly currently has 50 interns who work in shifts for a period of 6 months, with each of them earning a stipend of at least Ksh.20,000 per month.

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Siaya County Assembly Interns Speaker George Okode

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