KPA board changes halted

• Six Kimunya appointees must wait for conclusion of case challenging their hiring, says judge

Citing similar disparities in the appointments of members of the boards in Kenya Maritime Authority (KMA) and Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) which are dominated by people from Central Province, the stakeholders want the law changed to forestall such skewed appointments.

Separately, the union issued a seven-day strike notice to KPA over an unresolved labour dispute.

It also blamed Transport permanent secretary Cyrus Njiru for its woes with KPA, which it claims has refused to honour an agreement to employ 2,500 workers permanently.

The union is demanding that Dr Njiru be transferred from the ministry failing to which they will go on strike starting Wednesday next week.

“We signed the agreement in July last year which stated that after a restructuring process was completed the workers would be employed. But we have learnt that our demands are falling on deaf years because the PS is running the port from Nairobi,” union secretary general Simon Sang told a press conference on Tuesday.

“This is just a warning that we are not happy with the highhandedness the PS and Gichiri Ndua (managing director) have adopted over this issue. We want them to honour the agreement,” he said, adding that efforts to meet Mr Ndua and human resource managers over the past week were futile.

Mr Sang claimed that the PS was meddling in KPA’s internal management issues.

“The PS is controlling the management even in matters concerning terms and conditions of employment (and) we are unable to negotiate anything. He has even overruled the new structure which was approved by the board,” he said, adding that the official had instructed the MD not to see them.

But contacted for comment over the accusation, Mr Ndua denied refusing to talk to the union.

“I have not turned them down and they know that,” he said on phone. Dr Njiru responded to our calls and asked to be sent a text message, but had not replied by the time of going to press.