Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has opened up on an encounter with the late President Mwai Kibaki, referencing the day the late president gifted him a book during a meeting between the two.
Speaking during the second Mwai Kibaki Memorial Lecture and Luncheon in Nairobi on Friday, April 11, 2025, Gachagua said the incident offered him a snippet of the leadership of the late president.
The meeting occurred when Gachagua met the former president, who was a student leader at the University of Nairobi.
“I remember going to see Mwai Kibaki in 1989. I was then the leader of the Nyeri University Student Association at the University of Nairobi. I sought an appointment and went to his Nairobi office in Jogoo House. We had discussions and he wanted to know what were my ambitions.
“I told him about my interest in starting a business. I thought he would give me some money, Not Mwai Kibaki! He went over to his shelf, looked through some books, produced one book and gave it to me.”
“The book was titled ‘The Oil’ written by Jonathan Black. He told me if you want to be a good business man go and read this book.
“That is his mentorship and today I’m a good businessman. That was his leadership instead of tokenism,” Gachagua said.
During the event, the former DP Gachagua also lauded the tenure of the late president, citing his strong leadership and dedication to the people he served.
servant leader
Other leaders who spoke at the function included Professor Peter Kagwanja, Ambassador Francis Muthaura, among other leaders who served in Kibaki’s cabinet.
The Immediate former Cabinet Secretary for Public Service and Human Capital, Justin Muturi, also delivered an address.
In his speech, Muturi lauded the history of the former president as one that defined Integrity in public leadership, stating that Kenyans can learn a lot by reading the life of the ex-president.
The event commemorated the death of Kenya’s third president, who passed on on April 21, 2022, aged 90.