Power struggle at Agricultural Development Corporation has led farm operations this season to grind to a halt in most parts of Rift Valley. ADC is the major producer of maize seed in East and Central Africa on behalf of Kenya Seed Company. Following these incidents, the minister of Agriculture Peter Munya has appointed Mohammed Bulle as acting managing director of ADC with effect from April 14 2020 for a period of three months or until the post is filled substantively whichever comes early. “Following the recent court order restraining ADC, servants and agents from interfering with the peaceful performance of duties by the former managing director of ADC, I wish to clarify and state that, despite the existence of this court order, the employment contract of the former MD expired and as such, this court order cannot purport to extend the former MD’s term outside his contractual period,” the minister said in a letter written acting managing director Bulle and dated on April 14, 2020.
Peter Munya
This has come at a time when sacked former managing director Richard Kipkoech Aiyabei is struggling to be reinstated by the Ministry of Agriculture after obtaining a court order. However, the court order was rejected by the board of directors led by board chairman and immediate former Baringo governor Benjamin Cheboi arguing that the former MD’s contract had expired on March 13, 2020. “The contract of this man Aiyabei expired and he has no business in ADC,” the chairman told the press in Kitale. “The chairman of the board is hereby directed to ensure that there shall be no hand over whatsoever and that the former MD be restrained from accessing any company premises without the formal express authority of the acting MD,” Munya’s letter said in part.
Benjamin Cheboi
Local seed farmers led by Robert Maikuma and Jacob Werunga staged a peaceful demonstration at Sabwani ADC farm in Endebess where they condemned the former MD accusing him of sabotaging farm activities this season. They warned him to keep off ADC affairs and give the current management time to operate peacefully. “ADC is not a bedroom of one community being appointed to the top seat. Let even a Somali be the MD,” the two said and asked Munya to appoint Bulle as the new MD and forget about Aiyabei. Aiyabei’s tribulations started September last year when the board sent him on compulsory leave following alleged fraud of Sh4.5million said to have been paid to a contractor without the approval of the board. The board then in a letter to the Director of Criminal Investigations asked for investigations into the loss of Sh4.5 million being public funds by the corporation.
Mohammed Bulle
In a letter dated May 11 2020 the DCI wrote to the managing director of ADC saying they are “investigating a case of alleged fraud in respect to your complain letter MD/11/C/MB”. “To facilitate timely completion of the investigations, kindly make arrangements of the underlisted staff who were involved in the transactions in different stages to record their statement as from May 25 2020 to May 29, 2020,” the letter from DCI said in part. The staff who recorded the statement included Sarah Ngere in charge of budget preparation, Morris Adwati, signatory, Jonathan Keittany, in charge of the internal audit department, Josiah Mutuku, cashier and Gerald Maina, custodian of procedure of making payments. Last week, Aiyabei’s efforts to take over his former office were resisted by security and hired goons who ejected him out of the office at the development house. He refused to comment over the matter when we reached him for comment.
