Siaya County Government has dismissed over 380 individuals who fraudulently reported to the health department earlier this year using forged employment documents.

Chief Executive Officer of the Siaya County Public Service Board Mr. Wilfred Nyagudi says that the Board launched an audit of more than 500 personnel following public outcry over unpaid salaries.

He says that shockingly, they discovered that out of the over 500 individuals who complained of unpaid salaries, only 120 had been legitimately hired through a formal interview process and issued with authentic appointment letters.

Nyagudi told journalists that they involved the Directorate of Criminal Investigations in the verification of the documents only to find glaring inconsistencies such as deployment letters dated December 2024 paired with job offers from January 2025, confirming widespread forgery.

The announcement triggered panic at the county headquarters with many of the affected individuals who believed they were legitimate employees, collapsing in disbelief. Some wept openly, pleading for answers and wondering how they would recover the money of up to KSh350,000 that they had allegedly paid to secure the fake jobs.

Clinical officers Emily Nabwala Anyango and Felix Omondi, among those affected, said they had been working diligently under the assumption they were on probation and awaiting confirmation.

Omondi who is stationed at Ligega Health Center, revealed that he had survived on personal loans, expecting eventual payment from the county.

Mr. Nyagudi has however urged those affected to pursue legal avenues to reclaim their funds from the fraudsters, emphasizing that the county government was not party to the scam.