The Cabinet Secretary for Information, Communications and Technology, Eliud Owalo, has terminated the appointment of Samuel Maina as acting managing director of the state-owned Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC) over a commitment made by Maina to pay $5 billion in an arbitration case without proper authorization.
In a letter dated December 18, Maina had pledged KBC would pay the settlement to Channel 2 Group Corporation in the London Court of International Arbitration case No. 122233.
Owalo said Maina did so “without seeking the concurrence of the Ministry, National Treasury and the Office of the Attorney General and Department of justice.”
Owalo called Maina’s move “a total disregard of earlier instructions given to the Kenya Broadcasting Corporation on the matter.”
As a result, Owalo wrote in a letter to KBC Board Chairman Benjamin K. Maingi, “The appointment of Mr. Samuel Maina as acting Managing Director is terminated with immediate effect.”
He further instructed, “Mr. Samuel Maina shall proceed on suspension immediately and disciplinary action initiated against him by the Board.”
In Maina’s place, Owalo appointed Paul Macharia as acting managing director beginning Dec. 19. Macharia currently serves as the communications economic expert at the National Communications Secretariat.
Owalo directed the KBC board “to expedite the process of recruitment of a substantive Managing Director for the corporation.”
