HOW ROCHE PHARMACEUTICALS KENYA RECRUITED A SPANIARD WITH NO WORK PERMIT

Roche pharmaceutical's recruitment of a foreigner with no a valid work permit is in clear contravention of the provisions of the Kenyan Immigration Act (Cap 172, Laws of the land

Spaniard, Santiago Esteban Mosquera Blanco
set for deportation by next week.

 

Top management officials at a multinational pharmaceutical company Roche Kenya Ltd may soon face heavy legal punishments from the Department of Immigration after the department discovered to their horror that a foreigner had been on the firm’s payroll since March 2020 without a valid work permit.

Roche Pharmaceutical's recruitment of a foreigner with no valid work permit is in clear contravention of the provisions of the Kenyan Immigration Act (Cap 172, Laws of Kenya. He was here on what insiders described as “job rotation” and had been hidden away, working from his apartment on Lenana road. It is an act that smack of arrogance on the “chin” of the government by head of Roche Kenya Mr Frank Loeffler together with his team who hired the Spaniard, Santiago Esteban Mosquera Blanco despite protests from their human resource department. The Spaniard is in the country on a tourist visa. Roche Pharmaceuticals Kenya runs huge operations in the country and across Africa. The immigration department is reportedly set to deport the Spaniard by the 29th 0f July 2020

It is unimaginable to even think that Mr Loeffle was unaware of the illegality of his actions, employing a non-Kenyan to work in the country without a valid work permit is a serious offense that must be investigated by the agencies concerned so as to find out if there are any other foreigners on the company payroll, working without proper documents. Foreign companies with operations in the country must always comply with the country’s immigration rules as a part of their overall legal obligations.

ROCHE KENYA IN SUSPICIOUS INVOLVEMENT IN TAX EVASION RACKET AND WHY KRA MUST AUDIT THE COMPANY

The company is also being accused by a section of employees, most of whom are Kenyans of bypassing them when it comes to promotions. They singled out two cases where foreigners are set to join the company to occupy positions they feel should be held by locals. 

The company is about to hire two foreign nationals in the coming days. Javier Madina is another Spaniard; he is set to take over as the Marketing and Communications team leader while Anil Agarwal an Indian national takes over as the Finance Manager Roche Kenya and East Africa. 

On the other hand, only foreign nationals can be hired to head Roche operations in Kenya? Before Frank Loeffler was appointed to head the Kenya office, there was Andre Mendoza, a Brazilian who had replaced Darren Blamire, South African.  

Frank Loeffler landed a soft landing in Kenya after authorities in his previous work station in Ethiopia declined to renew his work permit, authorities there insisted that