Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua made a startling revelation during an interview on Inooro TV's Kiririmbi show on Sunday, June 12, 2023.
DP Gachagua claimed that his late brother, former Nyeri Governor Nderitu Gachagua, was poisoned by a notorious coffee cartel that holds a tight grip on Kenyan farmers.
He said that the family suspected foul play because the late governor’s health complications began after he waged a war against the cartel.
“Our family believes, and we know the late Nderitu Gachagua was poisoned by those people.
“And since then, a very healthy person started becoming sickly and we believe these people harmed him,” the deputy president said.
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The former Nyeri governor died in 2017 while undergoing treatment for pancreatic cancer at the Royal Marsden Hospital in London.
At the time, Rigathi said that “He has left us after a long struggle with pancreatic cancer. It is very sad for the family but we have accepted God’s will.”
This revelation comes in the wake of a two-day coffee summit in Meru, where Gachagua expressed his concerns about the influence of these cartels on the coffee industry.
In his interview, Gachagua went on to expose the insidious tactics employed by the coffee cartels, revealing that they have a history of bribing top government officials to maintain their dominance and power.
He said that shortly after President William Ruto assembled his Cabinet, Agriculture CS Mithuka Linturi was offered Sh30 million by the coffee cartel.
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He said that the same companies that buy coffee from farmers are the same ones that mill the coffee, market and export the product, giving them an unfair dominance that has resulted in the exploitation of farmers.
Despite Kenyan coffee being among the best in the world, farmers have continuously decried dwindling earnings, with many opting to uproot their coffee and focus on producing alternative cash crops.
He said that the companies that were adversely mentioned by Embu Governor Cecile Mbarire have rejected an invitation to explain their engagement in the coffee sector.
DP Gachagua also said he had issued instructions that Governor Mbarire be given more security guards to prevent the suspected coffee cartels from harming her.