Wednesday January 25, 2023
By STEPHEN ASTARIKO
Otieno says the government will hasten and streamline issuance of ID cards.
SERVICE DELIVERY: North Eastern regional commissioner John Otieno when he chaired the regional heads service delivery committee in Garissa on Tuesday, January 24. Image: STEPHEN ASTARIKO
North Eastern regional commissioner John Otieno has assured area residents of effective and timely government services.
Residents of North Eastern have for years complained of encountering frustration and, in worst case scenarios, they are forced to give a bribe in order to be served.
At the top of the list is issuance of ID cards, for which residents undergo rigorous vetting, too rigorus and time-consuming,they say.
As the area is close to Somalia and miliants are nearby, vetting can be excruciating.
So bad is the situation that local leaders have time and again voiced their concerns on the issue. Even President Ruto , while campaigning in the region promised to conclusively address the problem.
In his keynote address when he chaired the regional heads service delivery committee in Garissa on Tuesday, the new regional commissioner said that the new administration would make government services easily accessible in a timely fashion.
SERVICE DELIVERY: North Eastern regional commissioner John Otieno when he chaired the regional heads service delivery committee in Garissa on Tuesday, January 24. Image: STEPHEN ASTARIKO
Otieno said the ID card vetting should not be used to deny the crucial documents.
“The vetting committee members should, therefore, be people of integrity and not those who take advantage of poor Kenyans,” he said.
The regional commissioner said that the committee will be streamlined if need be "to ensure effectiveness in the process of vetting and issuance of ID cards".
“We (public servants) have no other business than to deliver services to the people. The services should not only be effective but timely,” Otieno said.
“When citizens feel they are not getting services from the government, they will definitely be dissatisfied. This, therefore, calls for loyalty and patriotism by civil service tasked with serving the people,” he added.
Otieno called on the regional heads to closely supervise their staff members at the county levels to ensure discipline and office hours are observed in the offices.
“There are stipulated government working hours that should be following and adhered to by all civil servants. Living office early or late will not be tolerated,” he said.