I recently ran into an acquaintance from a neighbouring east African state who regalled me with stories of that country’s own public sector corporate governance shenanigans that are not too far removed from our very own. For purposes of this story, we will call him Matiku. Matiku, and others not herein named, were board members of a parastatal that provided oversight on players within an important industry and key economic driver of this special country. With barely two months remaining to the end of their first three-year term, the line minister announced that he was dismissing the entire board.
Now if you know how the public sector works in these east African parts, a board director appointment to a parastatal is typically done by the line minister under whom the parastatal falls while the board chair is often appointed by the President. The board was rightfully indignant, after all there had been no malfeasance nor whiff of scandal regarding its role prior to the offending letters from the minister. Furthermore, with two months remaining to the end of their terms, it beggared belief that the minister would be chomping so hard at the bit that he couldn’t wait for their term to expire in a mere 60 days. But the mother of all umbrages had been taken by the board chairman. What the heck did the minister think he was purporting to do by dismissing him, a whole presidential appointee?
