Labour Cabinet Secretary nominee Alfred Mutua has vehemently denied any personal connection to Judy Jepchirchir, the embattled director of First Choice Recruitment Agency, which is at the center of a massive fraud scandal. The controversy surrounding Jepchirchir’s agency has captivated the nation, drawing sharp scrutiny from both the public and lawmakers.
During his vetting session on Sunday, Mutua was directly questioned by Deputy Speaker Gladys Boss about his alleged ties to Jepchirchir, who has faced severe accusations of defrauding jobseekers from Eldoret. The scandal erupted in 2023 when hundreds of young Kenyans, who had paid substantial sums of money to the agency for job placements abroad, found themselves without jobs and their investments seemingly vanished.
Mutua, who previously served as Kenya’s Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary, clarified that his sole interaction with Jepchirchir occurred once at the Kenyatta International Conference Centre (KICC). He stated that Jepchirchir’s agency was aligned with the goals of the Labour Ministry, and, at that time, he had introduced her to President William Ruto. However, Mutua asserted that he does not personally know Jepchirchir beyond that brief encounter and has never had further communication with her.
“I don’t know Jepchirchir personally. I only met her once at KICC when I served as Foreign Affairs CS. Her stand was close to that of the Labour ministry and someone told me what she was doing to create jobs. That is how I introduced her to President Ruto then. But I don’t know her and I have never met her again. Later on, I saw in the media what was happening,” Mutua stated during the vetting process.
The allegations against First Choice Recruitment Agency have been severe. Jepchirchir’s company had purportedly promised job placements in Qatar during the 2022 FIFA World Cup, a prospect that attracted numerous jobseekers from Eldoret and beyond. Applicants reportedly paid millions of shillings for these placements, only to find themselves repeatedly misled without job opportunities materializing.
The situation escalated when over 1,000 applicants, disillusioned and desperate, took to the streets to demand refunds. Jepchirchir’s reluctance to respond to Senate summons further fueled public outrage, casting a shadow over her company’s operations and legitimacy. Despite the mounting accusations, Jepchirchir has consistently denied any wrongdoing, asserting that her agency has successfully deployed over 7,000 Kenyans to jobs abroad over the past four years.
The scandal has not only highlighted the plight of the affected jobseekers but also raised questions about regulatory oversight and the effectiveness of Kenya’s labor export mechanisms. As Mutua faces scrutiny over his past interactions with Jepchirchir, the broader implications of the case continue to unfold.
The case remains under investigation, with many waiting to see if further legal actions will be taken against Jepchirchir and her agency. For now, Mutua’s denial and his limited involvement with the controversial figure seem to have calmed some concerns, but the demand for justice and accountability for the defrauded jobseekers persists.
As Kenya grapples with this high-profile case, it underscores the critical need for transparency and stringent regulation in recruitment practices to protect vulnerable jobseekers from fraud and exploitation.
