The Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) has appointed Alex Gitari as the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer.
Gitari, who until his appointment as the acting MD was the General Manager Finance.
In a press statement, KAA Session Chairperson confirmed his appointment saying that Gitari emerged as the best candidate after a rigorous interview process which was conducted as per the KAA Act and Public Service Commission guidelines.
“Gitari has provided effective leadership at KAA in an acting position and we have confidence that he is the right candidate to guide the authority through this pandemic that has adversely affected the aviation industry and more importantly leverage the opportunities and resources that will enable Authority to emerge stronger and maintain its position as preferred aviation hub in the region,” she stated.
The position had remained vacant for nearly two years and earlier the Transport Cabinet secretary James Macharia cancelled interviews for the appointment of the managing director after the board only presented a single name.
The Informer had established that the divided KAA board and a section of senior management aligned to Gitari were scheming to have a member of the public challenge the CS’s decision through a court petition to maintain the status quo.
The infighting and emerging divisions within the state corporation’s policy advisory wing and the management came against the backdrop of alleged irregular acquisition of hangars by board members through proxies at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) and Wilson Airport.
“One faction of the board and a section of the senior management are pushing to have Gitari promoted irregularly. They are simply trying to fix a job for him through unprocedural process. Gitari’s interview was conducted in March.” An insider intimated.
Gitari holds a Masters of Business Administration in Finance from the University of Nairobi, an Advanced Management Program from Havard Business School and a Bachelors Degree of Commerce in Accounting from the University of Nairobi.