Gachagua's charges similar to those he faced three years ago

That among the reasons Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua faces impeachment is money laundering and the use of his position to award his companies government tenders, is a clear demonstration of the term 'the more things change, the more they remain the same.' In a span of two years, the DP has fallen into headwinds with two administrations where he was once an insider and pushed out on claims of acquiring massive wealth by using his influence to bag big money tenders from government. When the mover of Gachagua's impeachment motion takes the floor of Parliament to lay down graft allegations against the DP tomorrow, the 'Truthful Man' will for the second time, in a span of three years, be defending himself for accumulating wealth amounting to Sh17.2 billion in a questionable manner. This is because, in the dying weeks of the Uhuru administration in July 2021, the DP who was then MP for Mathira was arrested and dragged to court to defend himself for accumulating Sh12.5 billion in his bank accounts in a span of seven years. In the motion currently before parliament, Gachagua is accused of acquiring a wealth portfolio spanning hotels to real estate amounting to Sh5.2 billion within just two years. This, according to the impeachment motion is inconsistent with his monthly salary as the deputy president estimated at about Sh1million. He has disputed these allegations terming the motion a breach of his constitutional rights and that he is a victim of political lynching. "The intended impeachment process against me essentially seeks to overturn the sovereign will of majority of the people of Kenya who voted for me to be the Deputy President of the Republic of Kenya," said the DP in a 144-page petition filed at the High Court on Thursday. On the question of his wealth, Gachagua termed the allegations, "falsehoods, outright lies, deceit, misrepresentations and suppression of material facts which have been peddled to the public so as to achieve improper and unconstitutional purpose of my choreographed political lynching." "Had the mover of the motion bothered to ask me or carry out elementary searches at government registries before sensationally making his false, wild, salacious and malicious allegations, he would have found the truth," said the deputy president. While it is up to Kibwezi West MP Mwengi Mutuse, who is the motion mover, to prove his allegations against the DP, the fact that Gachagua is being accused of using his companies to fraudulently acquire wealth just like it happened during the Kenyatta administration is quite telling. Interestingly, Gachagua was one of Kenyatta's closest allies for 17 years before they fell out as he has been to President William Ruto. The two are at the moment not seeing eye to eye despite riding to power on a popular wave just two years ago. Yet, when you look beyond the politics and sieve through the motion currently before parliament, there are a number of similarities to what the Assets Recovery Agency (ARA) accused Gachagua of just two years ago. In fact three companies listed in the impeachment motion; Wamunyoro Investments Limited, Crystal Kenya Limited and Technical Supplies Limited were part of the cause of Gachagua's troubles with the law in 2022. At that time, ARA argued that Gachagua who was a first-term MP, had not only used the several companies he owned to secure tenders from state agencies, parastatals and county governments, but also used them to launder money. The agency said that there were massive suspicious cash withdrawals, inter and intra-bank transfers from other accounts to the accounts under investigations and other banks accounts owned by Gachagua in suspicious complex money laundering schemes. In its submissions to court, ARA said it had investigated a total of 33 accounts associated with the MP and his companies, including Wamunyoro Investments Ltd, Crystal Kenya Ltd, Machine Centre, Technical Supplies and Services Ltd, Skytop Agencies and Specific Supplies Ltd. Wamunyoro Investments ltd, for instance, was accused of receiving several millions of shillings from another company knows as Jenne Enterprises, which had bagged big money tenders in the state department for Special Planning, Ministry of Health, Mathira Constituency development funds, Nyeri county government and the National Irrigation Board. Kenya Power was also listed in the suit for paying Wamunyoro Sh9.9 million in March 2013 for the gravelling of its Nairobi West office yard and surface drainage, while the Ministry of lands paid it Sh52.2 million for the supply of flatbed scanners and stations, for a contract awarded in November 2013. According to the Leadership and Integrity Act 2012, public officers are explicitly prohibited from participating in tenders for public entities where they are currently serving. Essentially, this means that they cannot submit bids or try to influence the tender process in any way within their own government department or agency; this is to prevent conflict of interest and corruption. Gachagua, however, defended the millions in his accounts saying apart from the government contracts, he deposited the money in a fixed revolving fund rotating between three accounts for seven years. And upon maturing-quarterly-the principal amount plus interest earned are rolled back to the savings account at his request, he argued. The High Court, however, disagreed with Gachagua's explanation and froze Sh200 million that was held in his bank accounts pending the hearing and determination of ARA's case. His companies were cleared and he got back his frozen money immediately after they took office. It is now 24 months since Kenya Kwanza took over and Gachagua is being accused of using his influence unfairly to enrich himself. In the petition before parliament, the DP is accused of acquiring real estate assets that are suspected to have been obtained through proceeds of corruption and money laundering. "For the past two years, Gachagua has inexplicably amassed a humongous property portfolio primarily from suspected proceeds of corruption and money laundering. He has acquired the property and wealth using his spouse, two sons and other close family members and associates as proxies," motion mover Mwengi told the National Assembly. According to Mutuse, Crystal Kenya Limited, , purchased Outspan Hotel in Nyeri County from Aberdare Safari Hotels for Sh535 million. The directors of Crystal Kenya Limited are Kevin Gachagua and Keith Ikinu, the sons of the Deputy President. During the same period, they also acquired Treetops Lodge, also located in Nyeri. Additionally, it is alleged that the Deputy President, through proxies, acquired several properties in Nairobi, including Olive Gardens, Queens Gate Serviced Apartments, Riara One Apartments on Riara Road, and Lang'ata View Apartments near the Southern Bypass. Beyond Nairobi, Gachagua is accused of expanding his investments to the coast, acquiring Vipingo Beach Resort in Kilifi County. He is also reported to have acquired several parcels of land, including 40 acres in Kakuret, Nyeri County, 80 acres in Meru County, and a dairy farm in Nyandarua County. Additionally, the motion claims that Gachagua used his influence as DP to pressure Ministry of Lands officials into issuing an allotment letter to Wamunyoro Investments Limited, a company he owns. This was allegedly done to acquire land parcels LR.209/12077 and LR 90923, located in Embakasi, Nairobi. "I do not own Olive Gardens Hotel or Queens Gate Serviced Apartments. These properties belonged to my late brother, Nderitu Gachagua who appointed me as co-executor of his will," the DP has defended himself. "I do not own Vipingo Beach Resort. Again this property belonged to my late brother Nderitu Gachagua who appointed me as a co-executor of his will. The property is being managed in accordance with his will," said the DP. As for now, only time will tell if the MP's baying for Gachagua's blood will prove him guilty of using his influence to enrich himself through government tenders. An attempt to cure this conflict of interest through the Conflict of Interest Bill, 2023 suffered an early death when it was watered down by the Senate in July despite an uproar from Kenyans.

Gachagua's charges similar to those he faced three years ago

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