CS Murkomen fires 5 KPA Board members in new changes
By Wycliffe Nyamasege, January 20, 2023
Five members of the Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) Board have been relieved of their duties in new changes effected by Roads and Transport Cabinet Secretary (CS) Kipchumba Murkomen.
The five are Lydia Yator, Stephen Gichuhi Gichohi, Conrad Thorpe, Farida Abdalla Sud and Nilfat Kassim Ali.
In a gazette notice, Murkomen also appointed five persons to the Board to serve for a period of three years.
The new appointees are Musa Osman, Emmanuel Kibet, Consolata Lusweti, Lucas Maitha and Caroline Njoki Mania.
“The appointment of Lydia Yator, Stephen Gichuhi Gichohi, Conrad Thorpe, Farida Abdalla Sud, and Nilfat Kassim Ali is revoked,” Murkomen said in the gazette notice dated January 19.
The appointments will take effect from January 23, 2023.
KPA boss fired
The changes come days after the CS revoked the appointment of Gen (Rtd) Joseph Kibwana as chairperson of the KPA Board.
Kibwana was fired at a time when the board was in the process of recruiting a substantive managing director to replace acting MD John Mwangemi.
Kibwana, who held the position since June 2018, was replaced by former Kinango Member of Parliament Benjamin Tayari.
Murkomen appointed Tayari to serve at the helm of the state corporation for a period of three years with effect from January 13, 2023.
Tayari lost his parliamentary seat to Gonzi Rai of the Pamoja African Alliance (PAA) party in the August 2022 general election.
The MP contested for the seat on President William Ruto’s United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party after ditching Raila Odinga’s Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) outfit in January 2021.