KTDA lay off eight senior employees for colluding ex-directors comeback
The Kenya Tea Development Authority (KTDA) has laid off eight senior employees who had conspired to facilitate the comeback of former directors.
David Ichoho, KTDA chairperson announced their termination after chairing a meeting with KTDA directors of six tea factories in Zone One, Kiambu County attended by Gatundu South member of parliament, GG Kagombe.
The move followed a statement by Ichoho calling out the move of the directors attempting takeover of offices across the country as an assault on the rule of law.
“On 26th September 2022 at around 7:00 AM, the former directors and former group company secretary of KTDA Holdings converged at the KTDA Head office. They obtained access to the Board Room through intimidation of the security officers manning the premises and proceeded to purportedly convene a board meeting where they attempted to conduct company business including the summoning of various KTDA employees. Their mere presence was disruptive to the operations of KTDA as they repeatedly and unlawfully summoned employees from their daily routines to harangue and threaten them and even attempted to requisition for various services such as processing of their alleged board sitting allowance,” he stated.
“This charade also played out in the respective KTDA managed Tea factories across the country whereby former factory directors stormed factories alleging to be the “true” directors. The allegations by the former KTDA and factory directors are ludicrous at best and illegal at worst,” he added.
The attempt shocked the tea sector with farmers saying stern action should be taken against the directors and warned that their move threatened to hinder reforms that had seen them benefit as cartels are kicked out of the sector.
He also addressed that if the former directors were aggrieved, the proper forum to contest the directorship of KTDA and the Tea Factories was through the substantive provisions of the Companies Act, the respective memorandum and Articles of Association, the Business Registration Services at the Companies’ Registry and the Court.
Ichoho also addressed farmers and told them that the KTDA leadership is farmer centric and that all business activities have been redirected and restructured to ensure that farmers get optimal returns for their tea business.
“To our esteemed farmers, we value your partnership and shall engage continuously, collaboratively and relentlessly to ensure that your interests prevail,” he further stated.
KTDA elections were held in May last year pursuant to the inherent powers of 600,000 farmers who are the shareholders of the Tea Factories as provided under the Companies Act, 2015.
