This archive report was first published on 15 July 2020.
Kenya Power, the state-listed electricity vendor, is facing a crisis after five independent directors resigned abruptly. The sudden departure has exposed deeper issues at the company, which has been grappling with a confidence crisis, corruption allegations, and dwindling revenues.
According to a public notice, the five directors - Adil Khawaja, Kairo Thuo, Wilson Kimutai Mugung'ei, Brenda Kokoi, and Zipporah Kering - tendered their resignation without stating the reason for their departure.
One of the directors, who spoke to Nyakundi Report in confidence, revealed that they did not resign on their own volition. 'There is much to this resignation. Personally, I didn’t agree with the board on some of the decisions, however, that is not the reason why I left. Someone mighty influenced our decision,' he said.
The director added that without independent people on the board, the public voice had been muted. 'The remaining individuals represent commercial interests. I wonder if any replacement is coming anytime soon, considering that an Annual General Meeting (AGM) must be called. Remember, the end year result is still pending,' he said.
The resignation of the five directors comes in the wake of reports that the government, with a controlling stake of 50.1 per cent, is keen on reshaping the company.
Kenya Power has been grappling with a confidence crisis, corruption allegations, and dwindling revenues. The company has been accused of inflating and backdating November and December 2017 bills to recover the Sh10.1 billion-fuel cost charge.
Consumers accused Kenya Power of manipulating its books to avoid disclosing lower earnings. According to the auditor general, the company recognised unbilled fuel costs as revenue, setting off a process that saw it manipulate the reporting of other items in its books.
As a result, the company's pre-tax profit for the year ended June 2017 was overstated by Sh7.6 billion, while the pre-tax profit for the year ended June 2018 was understated by Sh3 billion.
