A Whistleblower or mere rabble-rouser? Gachagua’s claims stir unanswered questions
That former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua is the fiercest critic of the Kenya Kwanza government is not in doubt.
What divides public opinion is whether the relentless, and many a time, bitter criticism bears any substance or is as a result of the unceremoniously and humiliating manner that he was kicked out of government in October 2024.
The jury is still out there as to whether Gachagua is a whistle-blower, acting for the public good is just a mere rabble rouser out to drag the Kenya Kwanza government in mud.
The latest of such critism emerged this week, when Gachagua shared documents detailing how known and alleged criminals as well as profiled warlords from various African countries were being freely issued with diplomatic passports, in a syndicate allegedly masterminded by former Immigration Principal Secretary Julius Bitok and Director General at the Department of Immigration.
The document revealing these worrying details titled “The following are some of the international criminals and warlords issued with Kenyan diplomatic passports” listed some of the alleged recipients of the documents as the notorious Zimbabwean wheeler dealer, Wicknell Munodaani Chivayo and several members of the notorious Sudanese warlord Hamdan’s family.
They included Mayada Hamdan, Abdulraheem Hamdan, Zamra Hamdan, Adil Hamdan, Zarwa Hamdan and Musa Hamdan Musa.
Others included Algony Musa and Algony Ahmed, bot close associates of the Sudanese warlord currently waging a vicious civil war against the Khartoum junta which has left hundreds of thousands or displaced.
Hamdan is known to sneak into and out of Kenya on regular basis, through the backing of senior government officials and top officials in the national intelligence apparatus, despite facing sanctions from the international community.
Gachagua in the same week rattled the Kenya Kwanza government when he blew the whistle alleging how billions of taxpayers’ money were diverted from the fuel levy fund and used to irregularly compensate select French companies for the cancellation of the Nairobi-Mau Summit road.
While Ruto and his French counterpart were co-chairing the just ended summit, Gachagua launched a sharp attack on them accusing his former boss of misleading Kenyans through the Africa Forward Summit 2026 and presiding over what he termed an increasingly authoritarian administration.
In a statement on Tuesday, May 12, 2026, Gachagua also took aim at French President Macron, who is attending the summit, alleging that he is an “accomplice” in the irregular payment of about Sh7 billion to French firms following the cancellation of the Rironi–Mau Summit Road project.
He said the highway project, a key section of the Nairobi–Nakuru corridor, was initially awarded in 2020 under the Uhuru Kenyatta administration at a cost of Sh159.27 billion but was later cancelled before construction began.
Gachagua claimed the government subsequently paid between Sh7.3 billion and Sh7.5 billion from the Fuel Levy Fund as compensation to the French contractors.
He further alleged that the project was later reassigned to a Chinese contractor at a higher cost despite a reduced scope, questioning the transparency of the process. He added that the Auditor General had flagged concerns over the compensation arrangement, though he did not present supporting documents.
“William Ruto is hosting African dictators, and the Africa Forward Summit is just a side show,” Gachagua said, accusing the President of using international events for political validation.
He also directly implicated Macron, stating: “Mr Emmanuel Macron, you are an accomplice,” after Ruto and Macron presided over the signing of 11 memoranda of understanding worth about Sh150 billion, including projects in infrastructure and energy.
These include a Sh104 billion plan to expand and modernise the Port of Mombasa and a Sh32.5 billion expansion of the Kipeto wind power project.
Gachagua further criticised a Kenya–France defence cooperation agreement and linked recent protests during Macron’s visit to public anger over economic hardship and governance.
He also alleged Kenya was becoming a hub for abductions and transnational repression, citing cases involving regional political figures and asylum seekers.
Warning of possible instability ahead of the 2027 elections, Gachagua accused the government of intolerance and urged international accountability over alleged human rights concerns.
If previous revelations by the former Deputy President have never been corroborated by independent agencies the latest allegations were vindicated by the Auditor General Nancy Gathungu, who in her report confirmed that a whopping over Sh7 billion had been diverted from the fuel levy kitty and indeed used to irregularly compensate the French firms over the cancellation of the road contract, adding that there was no evidence that value for money was achieved.
The revelations came on the eve of the just ended France-Africa Summit held in Nairobi this week and which brought together several heads of state and government.
The revelations were seen as targeting the French President Emmanuel Macron, the chief architect of the Summit.
The revelations attracted a furious response from former Cabinet Secretary Moses Kuria who in a statement hit back at Gachagua, terming him unpatriotic.
“The timing and flavour of Rigathi Gachagua’s comments on the Africa Forward Summit is further proof of a leader who does not care for this great nation. We may have our local differences but for Kenya to host an event of this magnitude is something that all well-meaning Kenyans should be proud of.”
Gachagua however received support from a cross section of Kenyans over his criticism of the whole event.
A social commentator, Joseph Barasa wondered why the Kenya Kwanza government was engaging with the French despite the turmoil they have wrecked in various West and North African countries over the years and which has seen nations such as Burkina Faso, Mali and even Senegal cancel some of their contracts and expel their nationals.
