The late Nyeri County governor, Nderitu Gachagua. Photo www.nation.co.ke
The late Nyeri County Governor, Nderitu Gachagua, was born on July 29th 1953 and died at 64-years.In 1976, Gachagua started his career in the Ministry of Public works in 1977 as a quantity surveyor after graduating from the University of Nairobi with a Bachelors degree in Building Economics.Between 1982 and 1983, he served as a Provincial Quantity Surveyor for the Ministry of Public Works before moving to the National Housing Corporation as the company’s chief quantity surveyor.Gachagua started his own quantity surveyor company in 1987, which he has been managing until his death.The late made his political debut in 2003 when he successfully contested the Mathira Constituency seat and served in the National Assembly until 2013.During the 2013 General Election, he was elected as the first Governor for Nyeri County with the inception of the devolved system of government.The late Governor Gachagua was a respected politician in Mount Kenya region and in the entire country.On November 2016, President Uhuru Kenyatta named the late Nderitu Gachagua in a list of political big wigs to spearhead his re-election campaigns in the country.The late served as the Chairman of the Council of Governors (CoG) Committee on Agriculture.He championed for better coffee prices and viciously confronted the coffee theft menace in Central Kenya.His leadership was anchored on inclusivity and agricultural development to spur growth.The late governor succumbed to pancreatic cancer at Royal Marsden Hospital in London, United Kingdom, where he had sought treatment.