Impeached former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua is currently on a U.S. tour — but insiders say it has little to do with politics and everything to do with money.
Officially, Gachagua told the press that he’s travelling to speak with Kenyans in the diaspora and the international community about the “state of the nation” following the Gen Z-led Saba Saba protests. He claimed he was being frustrated by government operatives and even faced threats of arrest at the airport before his departure.
But sources close to Gachagua paint a different picture: the former DP is in a deep financial crisis and is using the U.S. trip to fundraise for himself, not any resistance movement.
During his time in power, Gachagua allegedly diverted large sums into building multi-billion-shilling hotels and apartment blocks, banking on his influence in government to attract lucrative conferencing deals and state events. However, following his impeachment in October 2024, those connections disappeared. The hotels are now largely empty, and the apartments remain incomplete. Revenue is almost nonexistent.
“Gachagua is under pressure,” a source familiar with his finances revealed. “He has loans to service, stalled buildings, and staff to pay — but no cash coming in.”
Desperate to stay afloat, he is now appealing to diaspora supporters and old business contacts under the cover of “political mobilisation.” In truth, the U.S. itinerary — which includes stops in Dallas, Seattle, Boston, and Baltimore — is more about closed-door meetings and quiet fundraising than public resistance.
Gachagua’s fall from power has left him exposed and broke. His trip to America, for all the political talk, is a survival mission. Without state backing, his grand investments are crumbling — and now, so is his financial empire.
