Deputy Presidential Debate: Karua and Gachagua Reveal They are Worth Sh150 Million and Sh800 Million Respectively

Azimio La Umoja-One Kenya coalition party presidential running mate Martha Karua has disclosed that she is worth Sh150 million.

Karua made the revelation on Tuesday evening during the second-tier Deputy Presidential Debate at the Catholic University of Eastern Africa where she faced off with the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party running mate Rigathi Gachagua.

She says her net worth increased from the Sh56 million she had declared while running for the presidency in 2013 due to inflation.

"I think (I am worth) about Ksh150 million and that is because the Ksh56 million I had declared in 2013 has appreciated because of the inflation. I haven't had any new properties but I'm a person many may not understand. I am not thirsty for land, I am not thirsty for worldly goods. I am happy to have a house I call home, I am happy to have a house in my father's land. I'm not hungry to amass wealth. I'm hungry to do something to help my country to transform the lives of the people," Karua said.

"If you are looking at Martha Karua to be a billionaire, no. I am not hungry for billions.”

On his part, Gachagua denied claims that he is a billionaire, saying that he is worth about Sh800 million which he made during the reign of the late president Mwai Kibaki when the economy was thriving. 

He said the wealth excludes the Sh200 million that was frozen by the High Court in 2020 as the government questioned the source of Sh12.5 billion that allegedly passed through his bank accounts between 2013 and 2020.

“I worked in the Ministry of Lands and Settlement – Sh10 million. I worked in Kenya power Sh33million, I worked at the Ministry of Livestock for another Sh46 million. I worked in another organization I got up to 200 million,” said Gachagua.

“I don’t have billions…I am worth Sh800 million minus the Sh200 million, he stated.