A source privy to happenings that preceded the burial of former Nyeri Governor Wahome Gakuru has claimed Deputy President William Ruto is the one who requested leaders, and family to start funeral arrangements immediately after Gakuru's death.
The county boss died in a road accident while rushing to Nairobi for a talk show on the morning of November 7, 2017, after which his burial arrangements began immediately after.
Th same has been questioned by his relatives, who, during an ongoing inquest on Thursday, questioned the rush.
Testifying during the inquest, businessman Wachira Keen said it is Ruto who ordered for the same immediately after viewing the body at the Lee Funeral Home.
He told Nyeri Chief Magistrate Mary Kagendo that an informal meeting chaired by Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko followed at the Serena Hotel soon afterwards, as had been ordered by Ruto.
“The deputy president joined us at Lee funeral Home and he told us to start the governor’s send-off. We were many leaders at the mortuary including Mr Sonko and Nyeri Senator Ephraim Maina,” said Keen, then an official of the Athi Water Services Board.
But the family through Martha Waweru found the hurry questionable, lamenting that the burial arrangements began before the body could even get cold.
"Why was there a hurry to bury daktari (Governor Gakuru) and start the plans even before his body got cold? Investigations and enquiry on what had happened would have been allowed but instead you moved on swiftly,” she said.
Mr Keen revealed that he was passing at the accident scene when his driver alerted him about the accident, adding that his vehicle was used to rush Gakuru to the Thika Hospital.