Impeached Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua who had been summoned to shed light on his allegations that President William Ruto and the spy agency had plotted to assassinate him on Tuesday failed to appear before the detectives.
While addressing the media at the Karen Hospital after he was discharged, Gachagua said the National Intelligence Service (NIS) had on two occasions, in Kisumu and Nyeri, attempted to poison his food.
On Monday, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations invited him to write a statement to substantiate the allegations.
“These are serious allegations emanating from a person of your stature and cannot be taken lightly. In light of the seriousness of this matter, we kindly request your presence on October 22 at the DCI Headquarters to formally record your statement to enable prompt and thorough investigations into the matter,” the DCI said.
The DCI added: “We understand the sensitivity of the allegations and assure you that this matter will be handled with the seriousness it deserves. Your statement is a crucial component of our investigation.”
The embattled Gachagua was admitted at the hospital when he fell ill hours to the Senate vote that approved an earlier vote by the National Assembly to send him home.
He also claimed President Ruto was hell-bent on harming and crippling him, a thing the DCI said needs to be investigated.
“The President wants to take me down the same path President Daniel Arap Moi took with Kenneth Matiba. He pushed Matiba to the point of getting a stroke and eventually dying,” he claimed.
He added: “I want to tell the people of Kenya that I do not feel safe. Leave me alone my brother President William Ruto, I can’t believe you are the man I helped to become president.”
According to Gachagua, the first incident occurred on August 30 in Kisumu, where NIS agents allegedly managed to enter his hotel room.
“I was supposed to be killed through poisoning. They bugged my room, and one of them tried to poison my food, but we detected it and escaped the scheme,” he added.
The second incident, which he also claims was an attempt on his life on September 30 in Nyeri during a meeting with Kikuyu Council of Elders.
“Another team from the National Intelligence Service tried to poison food meant for me and the elders. After these two attempts, I reported the matter to NIS and asked the officers assigned to me to leave because I did not feel safe,” he said.
Gachagua attributed his impeachment to the two failed attempts to poison him.
“After the two attempts to assassinate me failed, that is when this impeachment motion was hatched,” he said.
He also said the withdrawal of his security detail had also made him vulnerable adding that even while in hospital, NIS agents could be seen lurking around the hospital.
“Officers from the NIS have been hovering in every room, in every compound here,” he said, adding that he had to call his wife and children to be with him as he feared for his safety.
The embattled Gachagua has also expressed his disappointment at the manner in which the President was treating him.
“Leave me and my children alone. Do whatever you want, but let me live, let me look after my children … .If anything happens to me or my family President Ruto must be held to account,” he said.
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