Sammy Gachuhi, the General Deputy Manager in charge of operations at Africa Star Railways Operations Company Limited (Afristar) is a worried man as his past came haunting him.
The man who has been described by staff as the ‘worst manager to ever work under’ at Rift Valley Railways (RVR) seems to have reached the end of his wits as the firm refused to side with him in his fights against staff mistreatment allegations.
Gachuhi is blacklisted by the World Bank for squandering money while working at the now-defunct in Rift Valley Railways (RVR). He was thrown out by Kenya Railways Corporation (KRC). It anyone’s guess how he managed to get a job, a top management position at Afristar.
At its height, RVR was doing good in terms of cargo and passengers. The firm had inherited over 20 engines from KRC but towards its demise, only a few engines worked.
Commuters in Nairobi were often faced with delays on end due to dilapidated engines, the Kisumu passenger train was removed from the route and the Mombasa “Jambo Deluxe” was tittering on the brink of collapse. It was embezzled mercilessly by Gachuhi and company.
What had at one time attracted American investors’, Emerging Capital Partners (ECP), a private equity firm, interests was mismanaged to the ground after it failed to clear billions in shillings owed to KRC.
The reason for the backtracking on the promise to buy RVR by the American investors was due to massive corruption that was revealed in an audit report in 2016 and a blacklisting by the World Bank.
The World Bank’s decision came after a review of the rail operator unearthed a well-orchestrated corruption scheme, where executives bribed government officials, cooked books of accounts, evaded taxes, and created briefcase companies as corporate veils to squander a Sh2.2 billion) loan from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) — the World Bank’s private sector arm.
Rift Valley Railways Consortium was majorly owned by Egypt’s Qalaa Holdings.
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How Sammy Gachuhi and co looted RVR
Six RVR bosses were named in the World Bank ethics probe, they were Karim Sadek (transport MD at Qalaa), Hassan Massoud (non-executive director), Carlos Andrade (ex-CEO), Bong Yoon (chief financial officer), Sammy Gachuhi (general manager), and Fabio Steffler (ex-chief operating officer).
The World Bank assessment found that the six executives inflated the cost of locomotives and bribed Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) officials to avoid paying VAT amounting to Sh377.4 million on the engines.
They were also accused of obstructing the forensic audit through delays, failure to make crucial documents available, and asking employees not to co-operate with the lender’s staff.
The RVR bosses secretly diverted the World Bank cash to lease locomotives from the East African Rail and Handling Logistics at the rate of Sh3 million each for the first three months and Sh2.5 million for the next 81 months.
The terms were amended in February 2015 to a flat rate of $30,000 (Sh3 million) per month for the entire 84 months in the contract.
“When making this request, RVR management already knew that the disbursement funds would not be used to purchase the locomotives as the contract had been transferred to ARLL on May 23, 2014,” the World Bank report said.
A staff Account of the man
In 2020, Afristar’s employees revealed massive mistreatment with most of them pointing a finger at Sammy Gachuhi.
TERRY MATHENGE Anyone who was in RVR, we all know Terry, one way or other, more being Sammy Gachuhi’s mpango. When ICD started, Sammy akamchukua akaenda nayeye ICD,akapewa tumadaraka na priviledges huko to a point ati to supervise older people who have worked all her life in Railways. Hii ikaleta shida sana, some staff and Sammy and his mpango were not their life. She is actuslly the reason on of the staff at ICD alifutwa job sababu Terry alimsema kwa Sammy and that how Simatwa akifutwa job. 2019, interviews happened, Terry went for interviews and whatever happened happened.
She was not given the employment letter because she didn’t pass the interview. The sponyo Sammy came to play with his powers, they mobilized big wings, CS wa housing, Mr. Hinga, the fromer PS Mr. Maringa (Arch. MGH, EFG, TRYI, kosokoso zote) wakapigia MD mainga. Pressure ikabuild up.
Terry and Ruth Munyaka would go to see Md and Milly Omido severally, they were often camping in MD’s office wearing miniskirts to get the attention of the big boss.
Terry Mathenge’s mother ni women Rep wa Rongai, so she had to bring her political powers to play motto wake aandikwe kazi railways. Mainga got overwhelmwed na pressure and that how TERRY MATHENGE GOT EMPLYED PERMANENTLY DESPITE FAILING THE INTERVIEWS
She was given RG7 Marketing Officer job, and rumors says that she was complaining kwa nini hajapewa RG6, hawajui yeye ni motto wa nani who knows who is who in this Kenya.
The other lady Ruth Munyaka(Sammy Gachuhi mpango) was in the same mix with Terry and Sammy and that’s how both of them got Permanent employment letters.
not seeing eye to eye. Ikaendea hivyo, Sammy left IcD nad Terry had to befriend the same people he had tortured because sponsor alimtoka. She had to cope despite people distance and hated the bile Sammy had brought in.
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