Big blow to First Choice Recruitment and Consultancy Agency as court dismissed its petition against a human rights activist

BY JEREMIAH CHOGE

First Choice Recruitment and Consultancy Agency has been dealt a blow after a court in Eldoret dismissed its petition filed against an Eldoret Based Human Rights Activist, Kimutai Kirui.

The recruitment agency has come under fire after collecting billions of shillings from youth drawn from various parts of Rift Valley promising to place them in jobs in Qatar which flopped.

In its petition, the agency through its director Judy Chepchirchir which was filed on 16th December, 2022 had sought a permanent injunction restraining Kirui from publishing defamatory articles against the agency which is under probe.

The petition had also sought orders of the court to have the activist pull down and or delete any published articles on social media Platforms or elsewhere regarding the dubious dealings of the agency that has led to more than 8,000 youth losing millions of shillings after being promised jobs abroad.

However, in his ruling, Senior Resident Magistrate P.N Areri dismissed the petition with costs noting that the applicant did not establish sufficient grounds for gagging the activist by a temporary injunction.

According to the magistrate, Kirui had also reported the recruitment agency to other relevant government authorities mandated with protecting members of the community from fraud.

“There was no justification from the plaintiff and issuing such orders will violate his right to free speech and a violation of the fundamental rights of the members of the community to information,” ruled Areri.

“I therefore dismiss the application dated 16th December, 2022 with costs to the defendant,” added the magistrate. Early this month, the Senate standing committee on Labour and Social welfare summoned Labour and Social Protection Cabinet Secretary Florence Bore and Inspector General of Police Japheth Koome to appear before it to shed light on the alleged fraud by the recruitment agency.

This followed a petition by a section of Uasin Gishu County residents and human rights groups in the region.

The committee raised concerns over the regulatory role of The National Employment Authority (NEA) on recruitment agencies and companies.

According to the petition, the agency collected billions of shillings for jobs and studies abroad which did not materialize.

The petitioners have called on the Senate to come up with regulations to ensure that recruitment agencies in the country are well vetted before being allowed to operate.

“It is now a major scandal that has robbed many families and youth livelihoods and property running into millions. This has prompted us to petition the senate to take up the issue as a matter of national concern,” adds the petition.

The senate standing committee has also directed Mr Koome to submit a comprehensive report over numerous concerns raised in the petition regarding mistreatment by police in Uasin Gishu County who allegedly conspired with the management of the agency to intimidate the petitioners.

The senate committee has directed the National Employment

Authority (NEA) to investigate the First Choice Recruitment and Consultancy Agency and if found culpable take necessary action including revoking the license issued to it.

The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) has also been directed to investigate allegations of threats of intimidation on the petitioners, and if the allegations are true, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecution (ODPP) to put them on a witness protection program to guarantee their safety during the period that the investigation by relevant bodies is being conducted.

Jepchirchir has also been tasked by the committee to provide a refund formula in tabular form for each of the affected people.

Jepchirchir who recently appeared before the Senate defended the organization against the accusations of embezzlement noting that some of the youths were barred from traveling to the gulf country as they failed medical tests while others were not qualified for the positions they were seeking.

According to the official, 2,011 applications were made for shortterm employment during the FIFA World Cup in Qatar last year.

“Due to unforeseen circumstances, some individuals were unable to attend. As a company, we value our clients and continue to sympathize with those who were affected,” Jepchirchir told the Senate committee.

According to Ms Jepchirchir, 177 individuals have since been reimbursed their money while another 449 have been transferred for a twoyear employment in Poland, Qatar, Canada, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the United Kingdom.

Rural Times has established that most of the affected youth parted with a lump sum of between Sh40, 000 to Sh200, 000.

Jepchirchir said that her organization has managed to airlift more than 6,000 youth to Qatar since its inception three years ago.

Tugenesis routes back 21 years later Page 2