Petroleum Ministry appointee claims he has been blocked from assuming office since March

A senior official appointed to the Ministry of Petroleum has alleged that he has been prevented from assuming his duties more than two months after being seconded to the ministry by the Ministry of Public Service. The Director General for Administration and Finance, Achuil Akoch Magardit, said he was officially appointed on March 30, 2026, following a Council of Ministers resolution mandating the Ministry of Public Service to appoint and second Directors General of Administration and Finance to national ministries. According to the him, he was subsequently assigned to the Ministry of Petroleum and reported for duty on April 3 in the company of the Minister of Public Service, who had accompanied him for the formal handover of office. However, the process was interrupted following the death of the official he was due to replace. “Unfortunately, it happened that the one I was replacing lost his life in Nairobi. So, we had to hold on at least for the late to be buried and the funeral to be carried out,” he said. Achuil said he waited for about 5 days before receiving a call informing him that he would assume office on a Monday. However, a day before the scheduled handover, he was reportedly told not to report to work because the acting minister, who is also the undersecretary, had travelled to Malaysia. He said the handover was later postponed indefinitely. “Before the other Monday came also, I was called and informed that the handing over had been postponed until further notice. Since then, I have been waiting,” he said. Akoch further alleged that last week he was summoned to the ministry, where he was handed a document offering him a consultancy contract instead of the position to which he had been appointed. According to him, accepting the consultancy role would require him to relinquish his appointment as Director General. “The document was about a contract being offered to me as a consultant. To be a consultant in the ministry, I have to leave that position of DG and assume the new assignment. I said no. I don’t need it, and I declined the offer because we did not negotiate it, we did not discuss it, and I did not even apply for it,” he said. The official maintains that he remains the legally appointed Director General for Administration and Finance and is seeking to assume the position to which he was seconded by the Ministry of Public Service. Eye Radio was not immediately able to obtain a response from the Ministry of Petroleum regarding the allegations. The post Petroleum Ministry appointee claims he has been blocked from assuming office since March appeared first on Eye Radio .