The board reported that 9,154 people applied for the position before the September 27 deadline.
The large number of candidates is mainly due to the large salary and allowances that the principal secretary receives, in addition to their extensive power.
PS is paid a total salary of Rs 765,188 per month as per the notification published by SRC (Salaries and Wages Commission) on 27 July 2022.
Ksh 156,075 with fixed market salary, Ksh 150,000 official travel allowance and Ksh 150,000 household allowance.
On completion of service, gratuity equal to 31% of basic pay shall be paid for each year of service.
However, the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) continues to pay salaries and allowances to the Secretary of State, including the chief secretary, from July 2022.
The Commission, chaired by Lyn Mengich, established a four-year review cycle for civil service pay and benefits under Section 11 (e) of the SRC Act, 2011 to ensure consistency with state financial planning and practices.
This comes after the SRC announced its third compensation review based on economic performance, job evaluations and salary surveys during the previous financial year.
About seven PS will be assigned to the new ministry after the demerger of various government departments. One of them will be given to the Prime Minister’s Cabinet Secretary led by Musalia Mudavadi.
Instead of just one government department, the Ministry of Health will have two: Medical Services and Public Health.
There will now be three government agencies under the Ministry of National Administration and Home Affairs. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Transport and Trade are additional ministries affected.
Taxpayers will have to dig deep into their pockets to pay Ksh5,356,316 per month and Ksh64,275,792 per year for the additional seven PS.
In addition, Kenyans must spend at least Ksh321 million over the next five years to pay the seven chief secretaries, including medical benefits.
According to estimates, the 49 PS will receive a total of Ksh2.2 billion from the Ruto administration over the next five years.