UN-HABITAT staff member James Ohayo was on Wednesday elected the new President of the Nairobi Staff Union for the period 2011-2013.
Mr. Ohayo who is a Communications Officer with the Water, Sanitation and Infrastructure Branch beat a field of six to emerge the winner after a 24 hour voting that started on Tuesday and closed on Wednesday morning.
A Kenyan national, the 54 year old marketing and communication professional has had a career spanning over 30 years, which has seen him hold various management positions including Advertising Manager for The Standard Newspaper (1988-1991), Marketing Manager for the Kenya Television Network (1991-1994) and Director of Corporate Communications for Kenya Airways (2000).
Between 1998 and 2000, Mr. Ohayo wrote a weekly column titled Marketing Matters in The East African, the premier regional weekly newspaper. He also conceptualized and was the debut host for Up Close and Candid, the first live call-in television talk show in East Africa.
In his acceptance speech, Mr. Ohayo called on all staff members at the Nairobi duty station to join hands and strive to deliver service as a united entity.
“With the elections behind us, let us now close ranks, and with unity of purpose, roll up our sleeves, and get down to work. To this end, I pledge to be President of all members of staff. Professional and General Service Staff, staff in out-posted offices, those who voted for me, those who voted for my opponents, and those who did not vote at all. Now, more than ever before, we need a strong, credible, and respected staff union; a union that commands the trust of staff across the board, and one that is respected by management. I have no illusions about the painstaking effort it will take to achieve that goal. But I am also confident that with the goodwill, commitment, and active participation of each one of us, the task is not insurmountable,” he added. |
