Chris Murungaru

Last updated

Christopher Ndarathi Murungaru (born August 19, 1954, Nyeri, Kenya) is a former Kenyan politician, a former Member of Parliament for Kieni Constituency in Nyeri District and a former Minister of Transport.

Contents

When the National Rainbow Coalition (NARC) Government took power from Kenya African National Union (KANU) in 2003, Dr Murungaru was named Minister for Internal Security. He was later transferred to the Ministry of Transport in a cabinet reshuffle following revelation of the Anglo-Leasing scandal, allegations he didn't expressly deny. When President Mwai Kibaki reconstituted the cabinet following a humiliating defeat in the November 21, 2005 Kenyan constitutional referendum, he was dropped from the cabinet. He was a close ally of Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki.

Anglo Leasing Scandal

Murungaru has been embroiled in a conflict with the British Government following cancellation of his visa to enter the United Kingdom due to allegations of corruption in the Anglo-Leasing scandal. He has taken the British Government to court challenging the cancellation of his visa. He has hired prominent Kenyan lawyer Paul Muite and a group of British lawyers, Mr Rabinder Singh, a Queen's Counsel of Matrix Chambers, London, Mr Richard Stein, a senior partner in Leigh, Day and Company and Ms Tessa Hetherington, a junior counsel of Matrix, to represent him.

On November 23, 2005, President Mwai Kibaki of Kenya dissolved his cabinet following a humiliating defeat on a referendum on the proposed constitution of Kenya. The President and his key allies, including Murungaru were campaigning for a 'Yes' vote on the constitution, which they lost, forcing the president to reconstitute his cabinet.

Fallout

On January 22, 2006, John Githongo named Murungaru as one of three top politicians (along with Kiraitu Murungi, former Justice Minister and present Energy Minister, and Finance Minister David Mwiraria) as being involved in a financial scam involving up to US$600 million. [1] On February 1, 2006, Finance Minister David Mwiraria announced that he was stepping down as a minister and a member of cabinet to pave way for investigation. The news was received with joy by many Kenyans, though some saw him as a scapegoat who had been sacrificed to protect a president whose support had been waning.

On January 16, 2006, President Kibaki allowed anti-corruption chief Aaron Ringera to request Murungaru to declare and account for his wealth. [2] Murungaru has since moved to court to prevent the Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission from investigating, saying fulfilling the commission's request would amount to self-incrimination.

Vice President Moody Awori announced on February 2, 2006 that he would not step down despite being adversely mentioned in the Anglo-Leasing scandal. He has insisted that he is innocent, and that nothing short of due process will make him resign his post. [3] He has criticized by many people for defending those involved in the scandal before Parliament.[ citation needed ]

Court battles

On February 17, 2006, the Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission (KACC) arraigned Murungaru in a Nairobi court charging him with failing to declare and account for his wealth. The Commission believed that Murungaru had become too rich too quickly and was keen to investigate the source of his wealth, especially in relation to the Anglo-Leasing scandal. He denied refusing to declare his wealth, and was released on a bond of KSh200,000.

On December 1, 2006, the Kenyan High Court determined that KACC's notice to Murungaru was not carried out according to the laid down law which subsequently led to the High Court quashing KACC's case against Murungaru. The High Court did not however stop KACC from investigating Murungaru or anyone else for corruption but insisted that any orders issued by the Commission be done so in a legal manner.

A society in Kenya under the banner of the Name and Shame Corruption Network (NASCON) held a demonstration in the streets of Nairobi to push for the resignation of more senior people in President Mwai Kibaki's administration. Key among them is civil service boss Francis Muthaura and Vice President Moody Awori.

In May 2022, the Court of Appeal in Kenya reduced the fine payable to Murungaru by Githongo from KSh27 million (US$228,000) to KSh10 million (US$84,000). Murungaru had successfully sued Githongo for leaking a dossier that implicated him (Murungaru) in the Anglo Leasing scandal. [4]

In what was considered an upset, Murungaru was defeated by a comparatively obscure candidate in the Party of National Unity's primary elections for its parliamentary candidates in November 2007. [5]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mwai Kibaki</span> President of Kenya from 2002 to 2013

Emilio Stanley Mwai Kibaki was a Kenyan politician who served as the third President of Kenya from December 2002 until April 2013. He served in various leadership positions in Kenya's government including being the longest serving Member of Parliament (MP) in Kenya from 1963 to 2013.

The Goldenberg scandal was a political scandal where the Kenyan government was found to have subsidised exports of gold far beyond standard arrangements during the 1990s, by paying the company Goldenberg International 35% more than their foreign currency earnings. Although it notionally appears that the scheme was intended to earn hard currency for the country, it is estimated to have cost Kenya the equivalent of more than 10% of the country's annual gross domestic product, and it is possible that no or minimal amounts of gold were actually exported. The scandal appears to have involved political corruption at the highest levels of the government of Daniel Arap Moi. Officials in the former government of Mwai Kibaki have also been implicated.

The Anglo Leasing scandal was a government procurement-facilitated corruption scandal in Kenya.

The Mazingira Green Party of Kenya is a Kenyan green party. It was formerly known as Liberal Party of Kenya (LPK). At the 1997 Kenyan General Elections LPK fielded a presidential candidate, Wangari Maathai, who later became a Nobel Peace Prize laureate. Maathai was only a minor candidate. She did not win a parliamentary seat. In 2002, the next general elections were held and the Maathai-led party was part of the victorious NARC coalition. Maathai herself won the Tetu Constituency parliamentary seat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moody Awori</span> 9th Vice President of Kenya

Moody Arthur Awori, known as "Uncle Moody", is a former Kenyan politician who served as the ninth Vice President of Kenya from 25 September 2003 to 9 January 2008. He is also the author of Riding on a Tiger, an autobiography about his life in politics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Musalia Mudavadi</span> Prime Cabinet Secretary of Kenya since 2022

Wycliffe Musalia Mudavadi is a Kenyan politician and land economist who is currently serving as Prime Cabinet Secretary of Kenya, and since 2023, in an expanded role of Foreign & Diaspora Affairs Minister of Kenya. He is a former party leader of the Amani National Congress (ANC), one of the founding political parties, of the Kenya Kwanza alliance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Githongo</span> Kenyan journalist

John Githongo is a former Kenyan journalist who investigated bribery and fraud in his home country (Kenya) and later, under the presidency of Mwai Kibaki, took on an official governmental position to fight corruption. In 2005 he left that position, later accusing top ministers of large-scale fraud. In the Anglo-leasing corruption which he blew the lid over, fraudulent deliveries of government military and forensic laboratory equipment were allegedly ordered, "delivered" and the payment completed in the former president Uhuru Kenyatta's tenure. The story of his fight against corruption is told in Michela Wrong's book It's Our Turn to Eat: The Story of a Kenyan Whistle-Blower.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Mwiraria</span> Kenyan politician

David (Daudi) Mwiraria was the Minister for Environment and Natural Resources and previously Finance Minister of Kenya until December 2007 when Kenya held its General Elections. Running for re election on a Party of National Unity ticket, defending his seat as Member of parliament for North Imenti Constituency, he was defeated by Silas Muriuki, who was running on a Mazingira Green Party of Kenya ticket.

Kiraitu Murungi is a Commissioner at the Kenya Law Reform Commission and the former governor of Meru County in Kenya. He is a former long-serving member of parliament for South Imenti constituency (1992-2013), former cabinet minister, and former senator for Meru County.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Corruption in Kenya</span>

Corruption in the government of Kenya has a history which spans the era of the founding president Jomo Kenyatta, to Daniel arap Moi's KANU, Mwai Kibaki's PNU governments. President Uhuru Kenyatta's Jubilee Party government, and the current William Ruto's Kenya Kwanza administration has also been riddled with massive cases of graft, topping in the list of corrupt presitents in Africa

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Saitoti</span> 6th Vice President of Kenya

George Musengi Saitoti, E.G.H. was a Kenyan politician, businessman and American- and British-trained economist, mathematician and development policy thinker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amos Kimunya</span> Kenyan politician

Amos Muhinga Kimunya, is a Kenyan politician and the Majority Leader of the National Assembly of Kenya under the Jubilee Party and Member of Parliament for Kipipiri Constituency, He was once Kenya's Minister of Trade. He was Minister of Finance from 2006 to July 2008, when he resigned due to the Grand Regency Hotel scandal. Previously, he was the Minister of Lands and Settlement. In 2019 Amos Kimunya graduated from the United States International University (Nairobi) with a PhD in business administration. On June 22 Hon. Kimunya replaced Hon. Aden Duale for the position of majority leader of the National Assembly.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Michuki</span> Kenyan politician and businessman

John Njoroge Michuki was a Kenyan politician and businessman. He was born at Muguru, village, Iyego Location, Kangema Division in Murang’a District. He was educated in Kenya and abroad. Michuki emerged as one of the prominent and long-serving civil servants and politicians as well as a businessman in Kenya. Michuki served Kenya in various capacities, including Permanent Secretary in the Finance Ministry, Chairman of the Kenya Commercial Bank, Member of Parliament and Cabinet Minister. He was serving his 4th five-year term as a Member of Parliament for Kangema Constituency. Michuki had a reputation as a "ruthless" and efficient manager, and was widely acknowledged as among the best performing ministers in President Kibaki's Government. He was serving as the Minister for Environment and National Resources at the time of his death.

The following lists events that happened during 2007 in Kenya.

Nyeri High School, also known as Nyeri High, is a boys boarding school situated in Nyeri, Kenya near Mathari Consolata Mission Hospital, which provides secondary education as stipulated by the 8-4-4 Curriculum. Despite being acknowledged as an academic giant in the region, the school has also developed a notoriety for student unrest culminating in the death of four school prefects in a fire caused by student arson and followed a few years later by a student strike that led to an official government inquiry into the running of the school.

Aaron Gitonga RingeraE.B.S. is a Kenyan lawyer who served as a judge and as the former director of the Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission (KACC). He was born in Githongo, Meru.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission</span>

The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) formerly the Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission(KACC) is a public body established under Section 3 (1) of the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission Act, 2011.The Commission is mandated to combat and prevent corruption through law enforcement, preventive measures, education and promotion of standards and best practices in integrity and ethics in Kenya

The Alliance Party of Kenya (APK) was a political party in Kenya.

The following lists events that happened during 2006 in Kenya.

References

  1. Controversy re "scam" Archived February 17, 2007, at the Wayback Machine .
  2. "Kibaki okays fresh graft probe on Murungaru". East Africa Standard. 2006-01-16. Archived from the original on 2006-05-22. Retrieved 2006-02-16.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  3. "Misc Civ Appli 54 of 2006 - Kenya Law". kenyalaw.org. Retrieved 2021-05-23.
  4. "Court reduces Githongo fine for Murungaru graft link to Sh10m". 23 May 2022.
  5. "Upset in Kenyan primaries" Archived 2008-01-02 at the Wayback Machine , Sapa (News24), November 18, 2007.