BY JOE MODIE
Reclusive billionaire Jimi Wanjigi has revealed that he funded and hosted a parallel tallying centre during the 2013 and 2017 general elections.
Wanjigi, who has expressed his desire to contest the presidential election in 2022, made the revelations last night in an exclusive interview with Citizen TV; his first ever.
He added that hosting parallel tallying centres is legal and that they are fed with results from their agents inside polling stations.
Wanjigi, who has largely operated in the shadows, told Linus Kaikai that the 2013 tallying centre was hosted at the behest of the Uhuruto duo.
“I ran that tallying centre very successfully on behalf of Jubilee,” said Wanjigi.
“Uhuru clearly won that election with 800,000; he even won the case at the Supreme Court.”
He takes credit for bring the duo of Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto together so they could contest the 2013 election. They however fell out and Wanjigi ran to the waiting hands of ODM’s Raila Odinga.
“We disagreed on a matter of policy,” explained Wanjigi adding that he at some point, had vowed to bring down the Jubilee Government.
However, pressed by Kaikai, Wanjigi admitted that the fallout with the Uhuruto duo had a lot to do with the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR), whose tender he had hoped to clinch.
He revealed that the deal he had negotiated with the China and Bridge Company would have seen the SGR project run from Mombasa to Malaba at a cost of sh55 billion.
Currently, the SGR hast stopped in Naivasha, having used upwards of sh450 billion. Wanjigi had wanted to give more details of the controversial deal but Kaikai was not keen.
“That kind of money is enough to construct an eight-lane highway from Mombasa to Malaba,” said Wanjigi.
He added that soon after Kenyatta and Ruto were elected, they deviated from their manifesto, which he helped write.
“Their policy was not in tandem with their manifesto. They started taking debt during their first term, including SGR and Eurobond, which I opposed,” said Wanjigi, adding that all the big debts were taking during the first term of the Jubilee Government.
Offering themselves for election
Regarding his presidential ambitions, Wanjigi said that he is the right person to take Kenya to the next level as far as economic recovery, even with his inexperience on the political front.
“These are unusual times and they call for politics unusual. The current crop of politicians offering themselves for election have been around for the last 30 years and we haven’t seen much change from them.”
He said that when the Jubilee government took over in 2013, poverty levels in Kenya were at 36 per cent, but that they have risen 52 per cent. He added that he would employ his business acumen to lift Kenya’s economy.
“Business is about finding solutions solving problems,” he added.
He singled out Odinga as the only formidable candidate, in the pack of presidential aspirants. “His chances are realistic,” Wanjigi said of Odinga. “But then, he has had his time and season.”
Follow the rule
Wanjigi, who is running on an ODM ticket denied that he has fallen out with Odinga.
“We are only competing,” said. “let him announce his candidacy he’ll find me out there competing with him.”
How would he tackle corruption? “Simple, by following the rule of law,” he said.
“The problem with this government is that it has a problem of adhering with the rule of law.” He added that adherence to the rule of law starts with the president.
“Family members of leaders are not supposed to do business with the government; it is unethical. Public service is not about enrichment.”
Wanjigi told Citizen TV that he started his business career as a private garbage collector, in Nairobi, during the Moi era.
“I had nothing, I had to rely on a Mzungu friend to raise capital for the business and that is how we bought our first pick-up. This was later followed up with three lorries and two canters.”