Gachagua Narrates His Interaction With Mwai Kibaki While In Campus

Gachagua Narrates His Interaction With Mwai Kibaki While In Campus

Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua said that former President Mwai Kibaki gave him a book on how to manage a successful business during a visit to his office when he was still in school.

Gachagua, addressing the 2nd Mwai Kibaki Memorial Lecture and Luncheon at the Serena Hotel on Friday, April 2, shed light on Kibaki’s contribution to his successful business empire through the gift.

The former DP stated that he sought an audience with Kibaki, who was then Vice President, while Gachagua was a student leader at the University of Nairobi.

Former DP Rigathi Gachagua praises Mwai Kibaki and his family, says he did not allow abuse of power and "tenderpreneurship" pic.twitter.com/PshJ2mgt76
— The Kenya Times (@thekenyatimes) April 11, 2025

This was an attempt to persuade Kibaki to help him realize his ambition of running a profitable business.

“I went to see Mwai Kibaki in 1988. I was a student leader at UON, I was the chairman of the Nyeri University Student Association, and through my then MP, I sought an appointment to see the Vice President (Kibaki),” Gachagua stated.

“I went to his office in Jogoo House. We had a lot of discussions and he asked me what my ambitions were.”

“I told him I was interested in business. I had thought he would give me some money to start the business. Not Mwai Kibaki,” he added.

“He went to his shelf behind him, which had many books, looked through it, then produced one book and gave it to me.”

"Mwai Kibaki Spoke Very Little But Did Alot, Am also Learning from Him"
– Rigathi Gachagua. pic.twitter.com/QQyTCylKmX
— Coletta Aluda (@Colettaaluda_1) April 11, 2025

He continued: “The book was by Jonathan Black and was titled Oil. He (Kibaki) said, ‘If you want to do business, go and read this book and you will be a good businessman.’ That was his mentorship, and today I am a good businessman.”

The former DP earned a degree in Political Science and Literature from UON, which was notorious for producing politicians in the 1980s and 1990s.

Gachagua was a significant benefactor of this, eventually becoming a District Officer in the Provincial Administration.

"We want to feel the growth the way we felt it when Mwai Kibaki was President"~ Rigathi Gachagua throws jabs at President Ruto pic.twitter.com/8c4JM9j7Q5
— The Kenya Times (@thekenyatimes) April 11, 2025

Gachagua also praised Kibaki for his outstanding development record, contrasting it with that of current President William Ruto, which he described as a significant decline.

He emphasized Kibaki’s economic policies, which he viewed as sound and propelled progress.

The former DP stated that taxes during Kibaki’s rule were represented in the development record, in stark contrast to taxation under the current system, which he labeled as predatory.

“Kenyans do not have a problem paying taxes, they only have a problem when they can not see where the money is going,” he remarked.

“We want to ask our brothers in government to know that Kenyans are not complaining about over taxation, they have a problem paying taxes that are misappropriated.”

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