Geoffrey Rigathi Gachagua (born 28 February 1965) is a Kenyan politician who has served as the Deputy President of Kenya since 2022. He previously served as the Member of Parliament for Mathira Constituency[1] between 2017 and 2022 as member of the Jubilee Party. In the 2022 election, William Ruto selected Gachagua as his running mate, and the two were elected with just over 50% of the vote.[2][3]
He previously served in various junior roles in government, including Assistant Secretary[4] in the Ministry of Home Affairs & National Heritage, Personal Assistant to the Head of the Public Service,[4] Personal Assistant to Uhuru Kenyatta, who was then Minister for Local Government[5] and as a District Officer.
He was born in 1965 in Hiriga village of Nyeri County, being the eighth-born child of Nahashon Gachagua Reriani and Martha Kirigo. He is the younger brother to the late Nderitu Gachagua, the first governor of Nyeri County. His parents were Mau Mau freedom fighters in Mount Kenya Forest, where Nahashon was building and servicing guns for the freedom fighters.[2]
He enrolled at Kabiruini Primary School from 1971 to 1977 before proceeding to Kianyaga High School for his O-levels and A-levels. In 1985, he joined the University of Nairobi, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science and Literature in 1988.[6]
At the University of Nairobi, Gachagua was the Nyeri District University Students Association (NDUSA) leader as well as the chairman of the Association of Literature Students.[7]
Career
After graduating, Gachagua was employed for a short time at the Kenya's Ministry of Home Affairs & National Heritage before he joined the Administration Police Institute in 1990. After graduating from the Administration Police Institute, Gachagua was posted at the Office of President Daniel arap Moi as a District Officer Cadet between 1991 and 1992.[7]
Gachagua then went on to serve as a District Officer in Kakamega, Ng'arua and Laikipia districts. Between 1999 and 2000, he joined Kenya School of Government where he graduated with an Advanced Diploma in Public Administration.[8] Between 2001 and 2006, Gachagua worked as the Personal Assistant to Uhuru Kenyatta.[9]
Between 2007 and 2017, Gachagua remained behind the scenes running his businesses.[10][11]
Rigathi Gachagua is known for his outspoken, aggressive and sometimes abrasive style of politics.[13] His time as a legislator was characterized by championing issues that centered primarily on the needs of Mount Kenya residents; often he addressed issues by publicly putting the authority figures mandated to solve them to task. William Ruto would later cite this as one of the reasons Gachagua was chosen as his running mate saying, “Gachagua is a very passionate leader, a people's person. He speaks about ordinary people...”[14]
In 2017, Gachagua took on Keriako Tobiko as the Cabinet Secretary for Environment and Forestry. The Cabinet Secretary had raised the alarm regarding overexploitation of upstream water resources in the Mt. Kenya Region and directed the Kenya Forest Service to destroy illegal intakes.[15] Gachagua claimed that many of the intakes destroyed were legal and that this had occasioned a water crisis for thousands of people. He said, “I am calling for his [Tobiko's] sacking on the basis of incompetence; he is not able to appraise the situation. He did not do due diligence on the legality of the intakes and he failed in analysis of the humanitarian crisis arising from the situation.” [16]
The Minister of Water and Sanitation, Simon Chelugui, was drawn into the fray, meeting with Gachagua and other Mt Kenya legislators over the matter. He promised to have all intakes with necessary documentation restored.[17]
Legislation
In 2019, Gachagua sponsored an amendment bill to the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act, 2015.[18] He argued that Kenyan firms could not fairly compete and would be run out of the market by Chinese firms that were able to get loans at less than a sixth the interest rates.[19] He was also critical of the alleged market advantages the Chinese received when carrying out government business, he said "What is annoying us is that once they get a contract the materials coming for the construction is procured from China, and they import it duty free."[20] The amendment reserved government contracts under 1 billion shillings for local companies and proposed stiffer penalties for circumventing the local ownership requirements for larger contracts.[19] The bill would eventually be turned down by the National Assembly's Finance and National Planning committee, citing limited local capacity to provide goods and services as the reason.[21]
Gachagua has a chequered past with pending court cases over alleged cases of misappropriation of government funds.[23]
On 28 July 2022, a Kenyan court ordered Rigathi Gachagua to reimburse KSh. 202 million (US$1.7 million), finding that the money was derived from corruption.[24]
In November 2022, Rigathi Gachagua faced corruption charges in a $60 million case. These charges were eventually dropped.[25]
Personal life
Rigathi is married to Dorcas Wanjiku Rigathi,[26] a retired banker who is now a pastor in Mathira.[27][28]
They met at a joint university event that was graced by President Moi at the University of Nairobi in 1985. They got married in 1989 and have two sons, Kevin and Keith.[29]
References
^"ODINGA". The Nation. 16 May 2022. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
^ abMenya, Walter (15 May 2022). "Rigathi Gachagua: The village boy a step away from becoming Kenya's DP". The Nation. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
^"Kenya election result: William Ruto wins presidential poll". BBC News. 2022-08-15. Retrieved 2022-09-09.
^Ng'etich, Jacob (16 May 2022). "Rigathi Gachagua: From Uhuru's personal assistant to his harshest critic after political tiff". The Standard. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
^"Rigathi Gachagua: Aggresive, combative and forceful". The Star. Retrieved 2022-09-15.
^"DP Ruto reveals why he picked MP Gachagua as running mate". Citizen Digital. 2022-06-12. Retrieved 2022-09-15.
^Ombati, Cyrus. "High number of water intakes in Mt Kenya forest worries CS Tobiko". The Standard. Retrieved 2022-09-15.
^"Government put to task over 'legal' water intakes". Nation. 2020-06-28. Retrieved 2022-09-15.
^"Report on the consideration of the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal (Amendment) Bill (N.A. Bills No. 36 of 2019)" (PDF). The Kenyan Parliament.
^ abOtieno, Rawlings. "MP Rigathi: My beef with Chinese businessmen". The Standard. Retrieved 2022-09-15.
^"MP wants Chinese contracts limited to save Kenyan businesses". Citizen Digital. 2018-10-22. Retrieved 2022-09-15.
^March 22, 2020, Sunday (2020-09-19). "MPs reject locking out of foreign contractors". Business Daily. Retrieved 2022-09-15.
^Asamba, Mercy (15 May 2022). "DP Ruto picks Rigathi Gachagua as his running mate". The Star. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
^Wainaina, Ndung'u (16 May 2022). "Rigathi Gachagua's political journey". The Standard. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
^"Afrique Kenya: le colistier de William Ruto condamné à rembourser 1,7 million d'euros à l'Etat". RFI. 29 July 2022. Retrieved 29 July 2022.
^Thirouard, Albane (12 November 2022). "Kenya: abandon des charges contre le vice-président Rigathi Gachagua". RFI (in French). Retrieved 12 November 2022.
^"Meet Rigathi Gachagua's Little Known Wife Who Is A Pastor". KDR News. 2022-09-19. Retrieved 2022-09-22.
^"Dorcas Rigathi: From pulpit to Second Lady's office". KBC. Retrieved 18 August 2022.
^"Gachagua: My vision as deputy president". Nation. 2022-05-16. Retrieved 2022-05-17.
^"Meet Gachagua's son who topped 2010 KCSE, runs family business". The Star News. 2022-09-19. Retrieved 2022-09-22.
External links
Gachagua's political crusade against liquor trade, Africa Intelligence, February 17, 2023 (requires free registration)
rigathi, gachagua, geoffrey, born, february, 1965, kenyan, politician, served, deputy, president, kenya, since, 2022, previously, served, member, parliament, mathira, constituency, between, 2017, 2022, member, jubilee, party, 2022, election, william, ruto, sel. Geoffrey Rigathi Gachagua born 28 February 1965 is a Kenyan politician who has served as the Deputy President of Kenya since 2022 He previously served as the Member of Parliament for Mathira Constituency 1 between 2017 and 2022 as member of the Jubilee Party In the 2022 election William Ruto selected Gachagua as his running mate and the two were elected with just over 50 of the vote 2 3 Rigathi Gachagua12th Deputy President of KenyaIncumbentAssumed office 13 September 2022PresidentWilliam RutoPreceded byWilliam RutoMember of the Kenyan ParliamentIn office 31 August 2017 8 September 2022Preceded byPeter Weru KinyuaConstituencyMathiraPersonal detailsBornRigathi Gachagua 1965 02 28 28 February 1965 age 58 Hiriga KenyaPolitical partyUDAOther politicalaffiliationsKenya Kwanza 2022 present SpouseDorcas Wanjiku m 1989 wbr Children2EducationUniversity of Nairobi B A Kenya School of Government Advanced Diploma in Public Administration OccupationPoliticianAdministratorBusinessmanWebsitedeputypresident wbr go wbr keHe previously served in various junior roles in government including Assistant Secretary 4 in the Ministry of Home Affairs amp National Heritage Personal Assistant to the Head of the Public Service 4 Personal Assistant to Uhuru Kenyatta who was then Minister for Local Government 5 and as a District Officer Contents 1 Early life and education 2 Career 3 Political career 3 1 Member of Parliament 3 1 1 Legislation 3 2 Deputy President 4 Personal life 5 References 6 External linksEarly life and education EditHe was born in 1965 in Hiriga village of Nyeri County being the eighth born child of Nahashon Gachagua Reriani and Martha Kirigo He is the younger brother to the late Nderitu Gachagua the first governor of Nyeri County His parents were Mau Mau freedom fighters in Mount Kenya Forest where Nahashon was building and servicing guns for the freedom fighters 2 He enrolled at Kabiruini Primary School from 1971 to 1977 before proceeding to Kianyaga High School for his O levels and A levels In 1985 he joined the University of Nairobi where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science and Literature in 1988 6 At the University of Nairobi Gachagua was the Nyeri District University Students Association NDUSA leader as well as the chairman of the Association of Literature Students 7 Career EditAfter graduating Gachagua was employed for a short time at the Kenya s Ministry of Home Affairs amp National Heritage before he joined the Administration Police Institute in 1990 After graduating from the Administration Police Institute Gachagua was posted at the Office of President Daniel arap Moi as a District Officer Cadet between 1991 and 1992 7 Gachagua then went on to serve as a District Officer in Kakamega Ng arua and Laikipia districts Between 1999 and 2000 he joined Kenya School of Government where he graduated with an Advanced Diploma in Public Administration 8 Between 2001 and 2006 Gachagua worked as the Personal Assistant to Uhuru Kenyatta 9 Between 2007 and 2017 Gachagua remained behind the scenes running his businesses 10 11 Political career EditMember of Parliament Edit Gachagua was elected as a member of parliament for Mathira constituency in the 2017 election 12 Rigathi Gachagua is known for his outspoken aggressive and sometimes abrasive style of politics 13 His time as a legislator was characterized by championing issues that centered primarily on the needs of Mount Kenya residents often he addressed issues by publicly putting the authority figures mandated to solve them to task William Ruto would later cite this as one of the reasons Gachagua was chosen as his running mate saying Gachagua is a very passionate leader a people s person He speaks about ordinary people 14 In 2017 Gachagua took on Keriako Tobiko as the Cabinet Secretary for Environment and Forestry The Cabinet Secretary had raised the alarm regarding overexploitation of upstream water resources in the Mt Kenya Region and directed the Kenya Forest Service to destroy illegal intakes 15 Gachagua claimed that many of the intakes destroyed were legal and that this had occasioned a water crisis for thousands of people He said I am calling for his Tobiko s sacking on the basis of incompetence he is not able to appraise the situation He did not do due diligence on the legality of the intakes and he failed in analysis of the humanitarian crisis arising from the situation 16 The Minister of Water and Sanitation Simon Chelugui was drawn into the fray meeting with Gachagua and other Mt Kenya legislators over the matter He promised to have all intakes with necessary documentation restored 17 Legislation Edit In 2019 Gachagua sponsored an amendment bill to the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act 2015 18 He argued that Kenyan firms could not fairly compete and would be run out of the market by Chinese firms that were able to get loans at less than a sixth the interest rates 19 He was also critical of the alleged market advantages the Chinese received when carrying out government business he said What is annoying us is that once they get a contract the materials coming for the construction is procured from China and they import it duty free 20 The amendment reserved government contracts under 1 billion shillings for local companies and proposed stiffer penalties for circumventing the local ownership requirements for larger contracts 19 The bill would eventually be turned down by the National Assembly s Finance and National Planning committee citing limited local capacity to provide goods and services as the reason 21 Deputy President Edit On 15 May 2022 he was nominated as the running mate to the United Democratic Alliance presidential candidate Ruto under the Kenya Kwanza political coalition Others who were eyeing the same position included Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru Kandara MP Alice Muthoni Wahome Tharaka Nithi Senator Kithure A Kindiki and National Assembly Speaker Justin Muturi 22 Gachagua has a chequered past with pending court cases over alleged cases of misappropriation of government funds 23 On 28 July 2022 a Kenyan court ordered Rigathi Gachagua to reimburse KSh 202 million US 1 7 million finding that the money was derived from corruption 24 In November 2022 Rigathi Gachagua faced corruption charges in a 60 million case These charges were eventually dropped 25 Personal life EditRigathi is married to Dorcas Wanjiku Rigathi 26 a retired banker who is now a pastor in Mathira 27 28 They met at a joint university event that was graced by President Moi at the University of Nairobi in 1985 They got married in 1989 and have two sons Kevin and Keith 29 References Edit ODINGA The Nation 16 May 2022 Retrieved 16 May 2022 a b Menya Walter 15 May 2022 Rigathi Gachagua The village boy a step away from becoming Kenya s DP The Nation Retrieved 15 May 2022 Kenya election result William Ruto wins presidential poll BBC News 2022 08 15 Retrieved 2022 09 09 a b Hon NDINDI NYORO Rigathi The Kenyan Parliament Website www parliament go ke Retrieved 2022 09 09 PROFILE Rigathi Gachagua Uhuru s one time Personal Assistant seeking to become DP Citizen Digital 2022 07 16 Retrieved 2022 09 09 RIGATHI GACHAGUA Venasnews co ke 15 May 2022 Retrieved 15 May 2022 a b Kamau John 16 May 2022 How Kanu groomed Ruto Gachagua bromance The Nation Retrieved 21 May 2022 Kenya Parliament 15 May 2022 Hon Gachagua Rigathi The Kenya Parliament Retrieved 15 May 2022 Muli Francis 16 May 2022 5 little known things about Rigathi Gachagua www pd co ke Retrieved 16 May 2022 Kinyanjui Moses 16 May 2022 Rigathi Gachagua From office administrator to DP Ruto s running mate www citizen digital Retrieved 16 May 2022 Ridor Group of Companies Yellow pages Kenya Retrieved 21 May 2022 Ng etich Jacob 16 May 2022 Rigathi Gachagua From Uhuru s personal assistant to his harshest critic after political tiff The Standard Retrieved 16 May 2022 Rigathi Gachagua Aggresive combative and forceful The Star Retrieved 2022 09 15 DP Ruto reveals why he picked MP Gachagua as running mate Citizen Digital 2022 06 12 Retrieved 2022 09 15 Ombati Cyrus High number of water intakes in Mt Kenya forest worries CS Tobiko The Standard Retrieved 2022 09 15 Rigathi Gachagua www facebook com Retrieved 2022 09 15 Government put to task over legal water intakes Nation 2020 06 28 Retrieved 2022 09 15 Report on the consideration of the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Amendment Bill N A Bills No 36 of 2019 PDF The Kenyan Parliament a b Otieno Rawlings MP Rigathi My beef with Chinese businessmen The Standard Retrieved 2022 09 15 MP wants Chinese contracts limited to save Kenyan businesses Citizen Digital 2018 10 22 Retrieved 2022 09 15 March 22 2020 Sunday 2020 09 19 MPs reject locking out of foreign contractors Business Daily Retrieved 2022 09 15 Asamba Mercy 15 May 2022 DP Ruto picks Rigathi Gachagua as his running mate The Star Retrieved 15 May 2022 Wainaina Ndung u 16 May 2022 Rigathi Gachagua s political journey The Standard Retrieved 16 May 2022 Afrique Kenya le colistier de William Ruto condamne a rembourser 1 7 million d euros a l Etat RFI 29 July 2022 Retrieved 29 July 2022 Thirouard Albane 12 November 2022 Kenya abandon des charges contre le vice president Rigathi Gachagua RFI in French Retrieved 12 November 2022 Meet Rigathi Gachagua s Little Known Wife Who Is A Pastor KDR News 2022 09 19 Retrieved 2022 09 22 Dorcas Rigathi From pulpit to Second Lady s office KBC Retrieved 18 August 2022 Gachagua My vision as deputy president Nation 2022 05 16 Retrieved 2022 05 17 Meet Gachagua s son who topped 2010 KCSE runs family business The Star News 2022 09 19 Retrieved 2022 09 22 External links EditGachagua s political crusade against liquor trade Africa Intelligence February 17 2023 requires free registration National Assembly Kenya Preceded byPeter Weru Kinyua Member of the Parliament for Mathira2017 2022 Succeeded byEric Mwangi KahuguParty political officesNew political party UDA nominee for Deputy President of Kenya2022 Most recentNew political alliance Kenya Kwanza nominee for Deputy President of Kenya2022Political officesPreceded byWilliam Ruto Deputy President of Kenya2022 present Incumbent Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Rigathi Gachagua amp oldid 1148690184, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
