KPA chief exits in rough seas after six years at the helm

Seventeen years ago when he questioned the high turnover of chief executives at the Kenya Ports Authority during a meeting of the Northern Corridor users, he perhaps did not have an idea his day will come.

Tuesday was his day to walk the trails of his predecessors after being sent home on terminal leave.

Mr Ndua had told the Daily Nation in December 1999 that the frequent changes of chief executives was making it difficult for the top managers to plan strategically.

“Those in charge need ample time to establish the operations necessary for smooth running of the port.’’ Then he was the coordinator of port business and business development manager.

To some he has had ‘ample time’ to run KPA, judging from the infrastructure successes that he has achieved so far over the past six years as chief executive.

The economist from Gatundu joined the ports authority 32 years ago rising through the ranks to head the KPA from 2010. After completing university studies he worked briefly with the government in Lamu before joining the KPA.

Over the years, he has made many headlines — from being the first African president of the International Association of Ports and Harbours to shepherding the port to become the second in southern Sahara region to handle more than one million containers in a year.

Mr Ndua frequently took opportunity to belabour this as one of his major successes.

“Although we have complaints about other things, especially in regard to how he handled workers, I give him credit for successfully overseeing the projects,’’ said Dock Workers Union chairperson Simon Sang.

He is one of the few managing directors who have served two terms at the regional port, with controversy stalking him over past few months before he hang his gloves.

Whether he had seen it coming and wrote to the board saying he would wish to leave when his term ends in July, it might never be clear.

Two of the past managing directors left under controversial circumstances, unceremoniously before expiry of their terms. Mr Ndua’s immediate predecessor James Mulewa was sacked over corruption allegations.

Abdalla Mwaruwa who was the managing director before Mr Mulewa was dismissed following protests by workers and a cargo congestion crisis.

Mr Ndua has been sent on terminal leave pending expiry of his contract together with other senior managers — Captain Khamis Twalib (operations), Muthoni Gatere of legal affairs, corporate services manager Justus Nyarandi and head of security Mohamed Morowa — were sacked.

Mr Ndua is seen as having been instrumental in transforming Mombasa port, especially in regard to infrastructure developments, but not without controversy. The KPA has been dogged by allegations of political influence, corruption and tribalism.

It is during his reign that the port was dredged to below 15 metres and the turning basin widened to allow bigger vessels to dock, construction of berth 19 and development of the second container terminal’s first phase.

Once the new terminal is complete in 2019, it will increase the port’s capacity by 1.2 million twenty foot equivalent units (TEUs).

The facility, whose first phase will be completed next month, is being constructed at a cost of Sh30 billion from funding by the Japanese government.

A senior manager who has worked under the media-shy Mr Ndua for more than 10 years describes the father of five as a “no nonsense, hard-working, visionary and a focused man committed to actualising expansion and capacity upgrade projects at the port.

‘‘What he lacked in his not so social character, he compensated in his hard work,” the source says.

According to close associates, Mr Ndua does not play golf, but likes watching it. He also enjoys watching rugby, loves football and is an ardent Liverpool fan.

“He is not a man you will find imbibing lots of his favourite Tusker Malt. Instead, he sometimes shares a drink with a colleague at Missions to Seamen while thoughtfully speaking in low tones,” says one of his acquaintances.

“After leaving the office on Sundays, he would occasionally drive into the club patronised by managers in the shipping industry, located just about 100 metres from the port gate.”

But it is Mr Ndua’s vast knowledge in global shipping trends that perhaps left many journalists attending his meetings struggling to discern the thrust of the stories.

He would delve into the economics of shipping, how cargo handled at Mombasa port was growing at a high rate compared to global trends, leaving reporters disappointed.

But according to those close to him, this was how Mr Ndua saw the port, from a global perspective. As he focused on his global perspective, critics say he neglected his employees.

‘‘He forgot how to deal with housekeeping matters ...As much as I respect him on his clean infrastructural record, I fault him for having a bad relationship with his employees,” said Mr Sang.

His critics term him as a “scientific manager” whose major concern was to see things work according to plan but failed to give much attention to operations.

But Mr Ndua’s woes with the dock workers’ union did not start during his reign. He inherited dock workers wrangles from his predecessors.

According to insiders, one of the reasons for his early exit and that of the other managers might have been the way he oversaw awarding of a tender for the second container terminal operator.

Transport secretary James Macharia noted that the tender has taken too long to conclude and ordered its termination, with a section of port users accusing those involved in the process of having been manipulated.

But whether the deals were struck at KPA or ministry level, this remains to be seen.

Things began to unravel from the time the tendering process began. A clause was sneaked in the tender documents requiring bidders to cede 15 per cent to the government, yet it was not clear who was to be entrusted with the shares.

In a brief telephone interview with Weekender on Wednesday, Mr Ndua, considered media-shy sounded freer. On reactions over his wealth declaration that sparked social media criticism: “I mean, that was not much (Sh275 million). No one called me enquiring,” he said.

In his mid 50s, Mr Ndua holds a Masters degree in Economics from the University of Nairobi. He has authored and presented several papers on transportation and ports, feasibility studies.

He joined KPA in 1984 and served in several roles including corporate services manager and business and development coordinator and is credited with being one of the chief architects of the port master plan including the development of the free port.

On what he would like to venture into after his reign at the ports authority, he says consultancy.