Karangi blocks new NSSF CEO appointment – Weekly Citizen

The board of trustees, National Social Security Fund advertised the position for the managing trustee in April this year.

According to the advertisement, as the fund’s managing trustee, the holder responsibilities include day-to-day running of the fund to the direction of the board of trustees to ensure contributors funds are optimally managed and released to enable members to retire with dignity.

This is to be done by formulating a clear strategy and setting agreed tasks and targets which shall be reviewed with the board on regular basis.

Atwoli

The managing trustee responsibilities include facilitate the preparation of the budget, strategies, operational proposals, annual plans and corporate policies for discussion by the board and implement decisions, resolutions adopted by the board. Further that there is effective communication between management, board and different levels of management as well between the fund, government and other stakeholders.

Qualifications were that one be Kenya citizen, masters degree in insurance, law, accounting, actuarial less than 10 years of working experience at managerial level in any one of the above academic fields and have certification in corporate governance. Registration with a professional body was another requirement.

Key competencies in the process were proven leadership and entrepreneurial skills, change management and strategic planning expertise and good interpersonal and analytical skills. Knowledge of management of an organisation of similar size or complexity, compliant to requirements of chapter six and 13 of the constitution of Kenya were to be fulfilled.

Applications had to be cleared by Kenya Revenue Authority, Higher Education Loans Board, Ethics, and Anti-Corruption Commission certificate of good conduct from Directorate of Criminal investigations and clearance from credit reference bureau.

The applications were to be addressed to the chairman of board of trustees and be received on or before May 9 2019.

Canvassing was to lead to automatic disqualification and only shortlisted candidates were to be contacted.

Julius Karangi is the chairman of of the board. Other trustees are Peter Tum (PS Labour), Jacqueline Mugo (FKE), Francis Atwoli (Cotu), Geoffrey Mwau and Damaris Muhika (Cotu) and Joseph Lekuton.

Others are Marion Mutugi, deputy cice-chancellor Kabianga University, Mark Obuya and Antony Omerikwa the acting managing trustee/CC NSSF.

Obuya

It is imperative to note, for years Omerikwa has been in the position in acting capacity raising questions among industry players and other stakeholders. Infact it is said, due to legal implication of the position being held in acting capacity, a section on the Board moreso the chairman pushed for the competitive recruitment.

Applications were made and interviews held. As per NSSF act, the board is after the interviews supposed to give one name to the chairman to forward to the permanent secretary Labour ministry, who is the administrative officer in consultation with minister Ekur Yattani to gazette.

Our investigations reveal among those who applied were rated top five were Omerikwa as the winner, David Buyo came second. Nyakundi as he prefers to be called for along Uganda pension scheme. Nyakundi is a Kisii. He is being pushed by Interior cabinet secretary Fred Matiang’i.

Third was Henry Kianda, the man in charge of Kenya Power Company pension scheme. He is from Mount Kenya region.

James Kimani, an insurance industry manager came fourth. He has roots in Central Kenya. Another face that occupied position five was Stephen Gichiga, also from Mount Kenya. Gichiga working roots is in Sasini Limited, a firm that has spread its investments in various sectors including agriculture.

As per NSSF act, the trustees after evaluation agreed on Omerikwa a Teso basing on merit, competence and experience, according to sources.

Those on board against Omerikwa according to our source were Mutugi (a Kikuyu) and Karangi.

It has emerged, instead of Karangi forwarding one name to the ministry for consideration, he is pushing for the top five thus the current stalemate at NSSF over who should be named the new managing trustee/CEO. Karangi and Mutugi are said to favour a Kikuyu to be in charge.

However, what has ended up tying their hands is the infact, the act talks of only one name being presented to the ministry. With all the documentations and rating it public domain, Karangi if he pushes his way out is bound to face legal tussle.

At one time having discovered the NSSF act had fixed him, Karangi and Mutugi wanted to push for the re-advertisement of the position but discovered out of the only two in their camp championing Kikuyuism in the appointment of the CEO.

Weekly Citizen has information, Karangi leadership at NSSF that of iron fist as during his days in the military is causing ripples not only within the board but at the management, staff and relevant parliamentary committees moreso that of labour and social relations.

Already, the office of Auditor General is questioning Karangi many forcing trips abroad at the cost of Kenya workers. The said back-to-back foreign trips are said not to add any value to NSSF. The trips infact should be of substance if they were educational and management one benefiting young hot blood at NSSF management not docile, cold blood of Karangi are that was retired from the military.

A source at the Auditor-General office revealed, ever since he named NSSF chair after being haunted out of Kenya Airports Authority as board chair, Karangi has used over Sh10 million on foreign trips.

Information we have is that, Karangi was removed at the helm of KAA after he influenced the supply of faulty scrutiny security machines that are currently under investigations. The company at the centre of the storm is Magnate Ventures owned by tycoon Stanley Kinyanjui. Karangi influenced for the company to win the tender that is currently being investigated. He is also said to have influenced the removal of international firms associated with tenderpreneur Jimmy Wanjigi from doing lucrative business at the airport moreso construction of the Green energy project.Karangi name features prominently in the current KAA investigations.

Weekly Citizen has information, Karangi is not powerful in the corridors of power as many think. Having been close to former president Mwai Kibaki during his presidency and with roots in Nyeri, he is among those then opposed to Uhuru Kenyatta succeeding Kibaki.

It is on these grounds after his retirement from the military, many expected him to be named in the Jubilee cabinet as Defence cabinet secretary something that has not happened to date. Instead, as those he retired with including his at one time junior Gordon Kihalwangwa has been making headlines in plum state appointments, Karangi is being moved from one parastatal to another to pass time.

However, at the parastatals, what has come to save thim is the big man teeth and the military air that helps turn the non-executive chairman office to executive one.

This is what Karangi has perfectly done at NSSF. As self-styled executive chairman, Karangi has decided to append his signature on each and every document some he does not even understand the meaning.

As a result, workers’ morale is said to be low with even union leaders planning a major strike.

Senior managers are also suffering silently under Karangi reign of terror at NSSF. First almost a year he has been in office, he has been inviting officers from Ethics Anti-Corruption Commission and Directorate of Criminal investigation all in the name of carrying investigations but nothing tangible found.

In private clubs, Karangi openly boasts he wants his key men in strategic NSSF positions. Apart from CEO, he wants them to occupy the offices of general manager investments, general manager strategy research and development and general manager operations.

General manager investments oversees property development, property management capital and money markets.

General manager operations is in charge of human resource, marketing and branding, information technology, finance, procurement and administration.

General manager strategy research and development concerns are strategy and change not forgetting research and development.

He also wants to manipulate happenings in the office of general manager social security. The office is strategic in benefits control and registration and collections. Regional managers and branch managers fall under general manager, social security.

The war over the appointment of managing trustee cum CEO took a new turn recently when Cotu and FKE wrote letters to Karangi questioning the delay in the naming of substantive CEO even after the board of trustees reached on one nominee.

Upon receiving letters from the two organisations. Karangi decided to get opinions from the ministry and NSSF legal team. This his surprise, they all agreed, as per NSSF act, the board is required to forward only one name to the chairman who eventually gives to the parent ministry to act.

With boardroom wars at NSSF over CEO appointment and with Karangi now an isolated man both at the board and the corridors of power, it is eargely awaited how the ex-military boss and the ministry will handle the burning NSSF MT headache.