Kenya Airways CEO quits over government meddling
Mikosz said he was leaving for “personal” reasons and that he would use the next seven months in office to continue with his turnaround strategy.
In an internal memo, he told the staff to expect “some good news concerning our future developments” in the next few weeks.
Many are speculating, however, that the resignation of Mikosz – who was head-hunted to run the loss-making Kenya Airlines after turning around LOT Polish Airlines – has more to do with his frustration at boardroom opposition to his plans and government interference.
Tense board meetings
“With Sebastian Mikosz, Kenya Airways had the best guy it could get,” says Jared Muriuki, a research analyst at Genghis Capital. “His resignation is not surprising though, given the recent developments.” The abrupt resignation also brings to the fore the boardroom tensions within the airline.
Mikosz’s resignation was accepted after the airline’s chairman, Michael Joseph, broke a tie in the board’s votes.
Mikosz’s reign has been marked by protracted conflict over a controversial plan to hand over the Kenya Airports Authority’s most prized asset, the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA), to the airline.
A report by the Daily Nation said that he had sidelined top managers who were critical. They then “chose to sabotage every step he made, leaking his every strategy before it fermented.” For example, according to the embattled executive: “After cabinet approved the PPP [for the KQ-JKIA deal] and we started the next phase, submitting it, we were accused of hiding it. The moment we sent the proposal, everyone went up in arms and we were accused of all manner of things including how a crooked deal it was.”
In an interview after he announced his resignation, Mikosz said he had started out by analysing the strengths of the airlines that Kenya Airways was losing market share to. “I asked myself: What do they do that I do not or what do they have that I don’t? The first thing I noticed is that they have a different purpose of existence.”
That “purpose of existence” is primarily that they are government-owned, while Kenya Airways is a public-private company.
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