KENYA : Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has blushed off President William Ruto's Political influence in the Country, insisting Mr. Ruto has lost his footing - and his woes are far from Over.
Speaking on Sunday, March 2, in Machakos County, Mr. Gachagua alleged Ruto's plot to oust him from office and render him irrelevant, had backfired badly, and that the head of state is now on his own.
According to Gachagua, the President's only lifeline is former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, who also seems to be changing his tune, issuing fresh demands on promises Kenyans want fulfilled.
The former Dp - made a bold claim - that he has drifted away from the Kenya-Kwanza coalition with a huge chunk of President Ruto's supporters' and leaders - rendering the head of state a Minority in the country.
"The President thought I was insignificant and would be forgotten in two weeks, I have taken everyone who was with him and now he is the Minority. Raila is his only lifeline, If Raila tells Ruto to wash his feet, he will Comply." Said Gachagua.
The impeached DP, slammed President Ruto over his recent remarks that the Opposition Leaders only manifesto is - how to remove Ruto from Power.
During his development trip of the coastal region last week, president Ruto faulted leaders who had attended Martha Karua's Party launch - claiming they had no manifesto and spent Four hours of the Party launch - discussing Ruto.
"Do not mind those who have no plan. I have tried to listen carefully to those speaking on social media, radio, and in newspapers. All their plans revolve around removing Ruto from office. They do not have any other plan or vision. Others Spent Four hours discussing Ruto in Nairobi, I don't know if they were launching a Ruto Party. I want to tell them that Only God has the Ability to Appoint or remove a leader from Power, not You". Said Ruto.
In response, Gachagua claimed the rattled president is idling instead of focusing on service delivery to the electorate - If he could afford to spare Four hours to listen to what they had to say. He didn't mince words - President Ruto, we have other agendas but our Main Agenda is to remove you from Power.
The Former DP, exuded confidence that the Mt Kenya Region, will succeed in President William Ruto's ouster at the ballot come 2027, with or without Raila's Support.
" We (Mt Kenya) Promised Ruto to Make him the President Of Kenya and We did. But Then he turned on us and betrayed us, We have learnt our lesson and Moved on, Now We are a new formation. We Will Not Beg Raila, if he Comes, Well and Good, If he doesn't, We Still Will Remove Ruto From Office." Said Gachagua.
The Former DP, who has grown increasingly vocal in his opposition to the current administration, claimed that a recent revelation of Ksh 1.3 Trillion irregularities in Exchequer withdrawals was part of a scheme to fund bribery.
Gachagua, claimed that President Ruto, has a Container in State House, Nairobi, allegedly holding the 'loot in cash, used to bribe leaders, Agencies and expand his personal empire at the expense of taxpayers.
His Remarks came after the Controller of Budget (CoB) disclosed that Kenyan government entities manually requisitioned Sh1.3 trillion between July 2024 and February 2025, bypassing automated financial systems intended to ensure transparency.
A confidential report signed by Controller of Budget Margaret Nyakang’o and submitted to Parliament’s Finance Committee reveals that these off-system withdrawals were to cover public debt payments (Sh893.97 billion), county disbursements (Sh222.61 billion), recurrent expenditure (Sh198.23 billion), and development projects (Sh4.12 billion), among other allocations.
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Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi distanced himself from the transactions, stating that individual ministry accounting officers should be held accountable. He also expressed surprise that debt payments were processed manually.
Appearing before Parliament, Nyakang’o flagged transparency concerns, noting that many requisitions were submitted as lump sums without detailed breakdowns of expenditures.
Finance Committee Chairman Kimani Kuria questioned why a government equipped with online financial management systems would process such large transactions manually, while committee member David Mwalika raised concerns over public debt consuming a significant share of tax revenue.
The committee has indicated it will summon CS Mbadi for further clarification, as the findings raise serious accountability and governance issues regarding Kenya’s fiscal management.
The sheer scale of the off-system transactions, encompassing critical areas like public debt servicing—which already consumes a disproportionate share of national revenue—and county disbursements, suggests either a catastrophic system failure or deliberate circumvention, at best, or a severe breakdown of control, at worst.
While automation is intended to make public financial management more efficient, effective and transparent, this incidence raises key questions regarding the effectiveness, its implementation, and the potential override of its protocols by political and agency interests.
The fact that a significant portion of these funds relates to public debt, an area increasingly under scrutiny due to Kenya's rising debt-to-GDP ratio, underscores the urgency for robust digital financial infrastructure and oversight, as manual systems create pathways for significant financial risks, including misallocation, embezzlement, and difficulty in tracing funds—presenting long-term implications on Kenya's fiscal stability, investor confidence, and international standing.
Given these manual withdrawals bypass the checks and balances built into IFMIS, and that the Controller of Budget, an independent office, raised the alarm, doesn't this massive breach—in a country celebrated for its digital advancements, like M-Pesa—suggest a deliberate move towards opacity.
However, later yesterday, National Treasury and Economic Planning explained the withdrawal of the Ksh1.3 trillion from the exchequer accounts.
In a statement issued on Sunday, Treasury Principal Secretary Dr. Chris Kiptoo clarified that all withdrawals followed strict legal and financial procedures, with every transaction subject to review and approval by the Controller of Budget (CoB).
According to treasury PS, the Treasury acknowledged that until the end of the 2023/24 financial year, exchequer requests and withdrawals were processed manually due to a lack of an automated system.
However, despite this manual process, all transactions complied with public finance regulations.
To enhance efficiency and accountability, the Treasury launched an automated system on July 1, 2024, in collaboration with the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) and the Controller of Budget.
This digital transformation aims to streamline the processing of exchequer requests, improve oversight, and reduce delays in fund disbursement.
Further treasury explained that the new system has successfully integrated all National Government Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs).
However, some transactions—including debt payments, transfers to counties, the Judiciary Fund, and the Equalisation Fund—were not included in the first phase due to their unique approval processes. Full automation of all transactions is anticipated by the end of the 2024/25 financial year.
Dr. Kiptoo emphasized that all withdrawals, whether processed manually or electronically, are subject to thorough due diligence and scrutiny to ensure compliance with public finance laws.
“The National Treasury firmly affirms that all exchequer withdrawals undergo strict legal and financial oversight. At no point has public money been lost or misappropriated through this process,” he stated.
The Treasury also assured the public that it will provide a comprehensive response once it receives the official report from the Controller of Budget.
Meanwhile, The Former Dp, had echoed similar sentiments last week, during the launch of the People’s Liberation Party (PLP) on Thursday, February 27.
On Thursday, Gachagua said there are containers located at the official residences of President William Ruto and Deputy President Kithure Kindiki.
According to him, the containers, one at State House in Nairobi and another at the Karen residence of the Deputy President, serve as cash reserves for influencing political figures. He also insisted that for this reason, Kenyans shouldn't wait for any development.
“Just to tell the people of Kenya, hakuna development itaendelea. Ile uliona error in budget juzi ya 76 billion hio ilikua ni pesa ya kuhonga Wakenya. Pale Karen kwa ile mtu ya ‘Mr yes sir’ iko container ya 40-feet imejazwa pesa hapo. Iko ingine hapa State House dollars. Sasa kazi yao ni kuhonga viongozi, ” said Gachagua.
Gachagua linked the aforementioned dollar reserves at State House to gold smuggling from Sudan, a claim that could further strain Kenya’s diplomatic relations with its northern neighbour.
“Sasa pale State House iko dollars, hapo inalipwa in dollars na nafikiri ni ya hii ya gold hii ya Sudan. Pale sasa rais uweke rate ya 1,000 dollars waskize nini. because ni uongo pekeake,” he said.
The former deputy president further claimed that politicians visiting Kindiki’s residence are offered Ksh5,000 to attend meetings where, he suggested, they are misled with false promises.
“Lakini tuambie Wakenya hatuwezi waambia wasichukue pesa, muko na haja na pesa, pesa muchukue. Na pale Karen imewekwa figure, ndo uskize uongo ni shilingi elfu tano, ya kuskiza nini? Sasa watu wameerevuka pale, wakifika pale wakiongeleshwa two hours wanasema maliza haraka utupatie pesa tufanye nini” said Gachagua.
