Coast water firm resists move to sack CEO

By NGUMBAO KITHI

The Coast Water Services Board (CWSB) has rejected a move by the Government to sack its new Chief Executive Officer, James Thubu.

Wednesday, Mr Thubu said CWSB had told him to remain in office and asked the former acting chief executive officer, Andy Tola to report to Maji House for further deployment.

"I’m still in office after the Coast Water Service Board asked me to stay and directed Mr Tola to report to Nairobi," he said.

The board has directed Tola to report to Nairobi for redeployment.

Tola had initially been asked to report back to the Coast Water Services Board to continue serving as the acting chief executive officer until a CEO was appointed.

But the board defied the order issued by the director of water services, PO Mangiti, on behalf of Water PS David Stower.

Sources at CWSB said the fight to manage the water supply was due to the huge donation of Sh7 billion from the French Government and the World Bank.

Residents wondered why Thubu was employed and sacked after two weeks and the former acting CEO, Tola, brought back.

Tola, however, dismissed the claims that the donor funds could easily be misused.

He said the donors directly monitor the funds, making it difficult to embezzle them.

In a letter signed by Mangit on Stower addressed to board chairman Antony Mrima, Tola was to report to the board headquarters by Wednesday morning. The same letter had also been copied to Water minister Charity Ngilu.

There have been claims that a section of members of the board have vested interests in the matter and the row may not end anytime soon.