East African Portland Cement Company (EAPCC) has fired its acting Managing Director Stephen Nthei and replaced him with Daniel Kiprono.
The cash-strapped cement maker through a notice on Wednesday said that Mr Kiprono, a career accountant took over on February 8, ending Mr Nthei’s 19-month stay at the helm of EAPCC.
Mr Kiprono has served in various capacities with his immediate post being head of the Internal Audit department.
“The board of the company wishes to inform the shareholders that Mr Daniel Kiprono has been appointed as the acting Managing Director of the company with effect from February 8, 2021,” EAPCC said in the notice.
The new managing director takes charge at a time the cement manufacturer is keen to turn around its fortunes months after its move to convert all its permanent staff to temporary workers with a pay cut of up to 50 per cent as part of taming its wage bill amid depressed earnings.
Mr Nthei’s exit comes at a time there are allegations of a fallout amongst the firm’s top management over the sale of its Mavoko land to pay a bank loan and raise cash for operations.
The loss-making cement maker was last year declared technically insolvent after its liabilities payable within 12 months outstripped assets in the year ended June 2019.
EAPCC had tasked Mr Nthei with shepherding its turnaround backed by the multibillion-shilling sale of over 2,000 acres of prime land in Mavoko, Machakos to raise money to pay a KCB loan. Last November, the firm said it was yet to find a “suitable” buyer for 2,076 acres.
