Attorney General Justin Muturi has approved the appointment of Joe Sang as the acting Managing Director of Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC).
In an advisory letter to the board of KPC, the AG said that there is nothing wrong with appointing an external person to be KPC boss in the circumstance that the board did not find a suitable candidate within the state corporation.
“We note that the Circular does not make provision for the course of action in the event that no suitable officer is available from both the agency and the Ministry,” Muturi said in a letter copied to Head Public Service Felix Koskei, Treasury CS Njunguna Ndung’u and Energy and Petroleum CS David Chirchir.
“It is our advice that there is nothing in the law and in KPC’s constitutive and governance instruments that bars the appointment of an acting Managing Director from outside KPC and or the parent Ministry as long as there is compliance with the referenced Circular,” Muturi added.
Sang was reappointed MD by KPC board after he was cleared of alleged graft charges last month.
Sang alongside five other KPC senior managers were arrested on December 7, 2018, and charged with implementing the Kisumu oil jetty project which cost taxpayers an alleged loss of Sh1.9 billion.
Last month, trial magistrate Victor Wakumile ruled that there was no evidence to support the allegations of abuse of office, engaging in a project without prior planning and willful failure to comply with applicable laws and guidelines relating to management of public funds.
He takes over from Macharia Irungu who ended his three-year tenure at the state corporation as the board declined to renew his contract last week.
In a letter, the board said that Irungu’s contract was terminated after he showed no interest in the post.
Irungu has however challenged his removal from office at the Employment and Labour Court.
He claims that he was earlier sent a letter by the board which extended his contract term to five years.