Sitati Elected President Along with New CAKP Leadership
By Oliver Sindabi and Symon G. Ogeto
Posted on May 10, 2005

May 9 -- Jacob Sitati was elected 2005-06 president of Chicago Association of Kenyan Professionals (CAKP) Saturday, May 7. The election took place during a breakfast held at downtown Chicago’s Savory Grill, 800 South Michigan. Prior to his elevation to president, Sitati was served the organization as interim secretary general and director of special events. Also, Debbie Ondimu and Laban Obaga were elected as secretary general and treasurer respectively

Newly elected CAKP executive team:L to R: Jacob Sitati, President; Debbie Ondimu, secretary general and Laban Obaga, treasurer/photo by Manjamba

The breakfast elected a lean team of three officials from the previous five positions which have been serving the group since its inception over fives years ago. The trimming was agreed upon by the outgoing executive team in order for the organization to meet exact formal positions allowable in the registration and annual reports that CAKP uses to file with Illinois Secretary of State Office.

“I am excited to have a new team of leaders and feel honored to have the privilege to serve the growing community of professionals among Kenyan immigrants and Chicagoans interested in networking with other immigrant communities” said Sitati. The new team will focus on increasing membership, continuing its networking events and developing relationships with local and national leaders and organizations.

Sitati attends John Marshall Law School and also interns as a law associate at the Chicago-based Laner, Muchin, Dombrow, Becker, Levin and Tominberg, Ltd., is one of the oldest and largest exclusive labor and employment law firms in the country. The business concentrates exclusively in representing management.

Ondimu, who is the only woman in the new team, felt that serving as secretary general was comfortable for now even though she had been nominated by several members to stand for president. Ondimu works as placement coordinator at Jobs for Youth, a Chicago-based non-for-profit that seeks job opportunities for youths between 17- and 24-years old most of whom fall under the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS).

"Whatever your mind can conceive and believe it can achieve." These are the words that Ondimu provided as inspiration toward her new appointment. The quote is by Napoleon Hill, an American born who is considered to have influenced more people into success than any other person in history. Napoleon lived between 1883-1970 and credited as the "Founder of The Science Of Success"

Obaga assumed his new position along with a registration of 11 new members who joined CAKP during the organization. “This is a clear sign that folks want to be a part of something in the City. Obaga relocated from Oklahoma to Chicago last year to take a new position as system analyst with Experien, one the three leading credit reporting agencies in the US. Obaga had just completed his graduate studies in Oklahoma State University.

Martin Mbaya who has been serving the organization as vice president complemented the new team saying, “the most striking aspect of the newly elected team is the variety of professions and backgrounds it represents. CAKP has an excellent foundation for the year ahead.” Mbaya works for Electronic Knowledge Exchange (EKI), a Chicago minority-owned leading consulting technology solutions developer of software applications that serve in areas such as web portals, e-commerce, knowledge management, employee intranets, workgroup collaboration and process automation.

Sitati took over from Symon Ogeto, publisher of Mashariki Leo. Ondimu took over from Michael Chitavi who relocated to Michigan last year and Obaga took over from David Maina, a University of Illinois at Chicago trained orthodontist. Maina is also a professor at the Science and Math department, Columbia College Chicago.

Over the last three years, CAKP has played a vital role in linking Kenyan professionals in Chicago. In November 2003, CAKP hosted US Senator Barack Obama who at the time was seeking Democratic nomination for his present position. Overall, CAKP organized a number of professional events, hosted other honorable guests and collaborated with other organizations such as United Kenyans of Chicago (UKC) in community-based efforts.