SAD💔 How Mwai Kibaki former Bodyguard was forgotten and Now languishing in the village.
At around 6:30 pm along the Machakos turn-off on Mombasa Road, a campaign vehicle Range rover KAH016G was involved in a grisly accident and plunged into a ditch.
Inside that car were three people. One of them was Mwai Kibaki. Another was the man who had faithfully guarded him for years, Mr. David Wambugu.
Wambugu was not just a bodyguard.
He was the man seated in the same car with Mwai Kibaki during that accident which changed Kenya’s history.
From 1996, he had been Kibaki’s official security officer, assigned by the government at Kibaki’s own request.
Those were tense political times, the era of multiparty politics, approaching the 1997 elections, and real threats to politicians’ lives.
Kibaki wanted someone he trusted, someone from home. That is how a young RECCE GSU officer from Othaya constituency witima village,.. David Wambugu, was assigned to him.
Over the years, the two grew close. They spoke in their local dialect, shared long journeys, and built a bond that went beyond duty.
Wambugu served Kibaki with loyalty, respect, and total dedication. He was there every day. He never failed his assignment.
Coming from the same region as Kibaki was an advantage, as it earned the young Wambugu a deep trust from the candidate.
For months during the intense campaign, Wambugu worked tirelessly, sometimes going without sleep for 24 hours straight, accompanying Mwai Kibaki to rallies across the country, from Nyanza to Malindi, from Kwale to Turkana.
He constantly assessed security threats, always placing himself between danger and the man he was sworn to protect.
Then came the accident.
Both Kibaki and Wambugu were seriously injured. Wambugu was rushed to hospital unconscious.
When he later woke up, the first thing he asked was not about himself, he asked, “Kibaki ako wapi?” He was told Kibaki was alive but badly injured.
Weak and in pain, Wambugu asked to be taken to see him. Pushed in a wheelchair, he was taken to Kibaki’s room.
He still remembers Mama Lucy Kibaki asking him quietly, “ Mzee Akikuona, atakukumbuka?”
Wambugu was taken in. Kibaki lay there, helpless on a sick bed.
The two men looked at each other. They nodded and Kibaki said to Lucy "huyu ni yule kijana wetu". That was the moment. Wambugu was wheeled back to his room.
Soon after, Kibaki was flown abroad for treatment. Later, he returned, won the election, and became the 3rd President of the Republic of Kenya.
But Wambugu’s life took a very different path.
He had been injured in the line of duty, officially assigned by the Kenya Police Service.
He continued treatment in Nairobi. When the time came for discharge, his hospital bill was cleared by State House. Instead of this being appreciated, it angered his seniors.
They questioned why a junior officer’s bill would be paid by the center of power. Jealousy crept in. Silence followed.
Wambugu was later transferred to Maragua, Murang’a, even though his body had not healed completely.
He kept attending clinics, struggling through pain, still hoping to reach the President he once served so closely. He never succeeded.
One day, he was summoned to Police Headquarters in Nairobi. There, he met his boss waiting him in bated breath. He was told to sign papers for early retirement. Wambugu refused. He was then told plainly: “This is not a request. It is a must.”
He was forced to sign.
The words that followed broke him completely. His boss told him, to his face, that he could not allow a cripple to work under him.
That moment marked the beginning of total darkness.
According to Wambugu, President Kibaki himself had recommended him for promotion. Instead, he was sent home against his wishes, stripped of his fundamental rights, and all this happened without Kibaki’s knowledge.
Whenever the President inquired, lies were told, that Wambugu had retired voluntarily. At just 32 years old, Wambugu’s life was shattered. What a cruel!
Early retirement meant no salary, no medical cover, and hospital bills from his own pocket.
A man injured while protecting a future president was discarded like he never mattered. It was the height of impunity. An injustice too heavy to understand.
Kibaki himself had said publicly, “This young man risked his life for me. I will ensure he receives the best care possible.”
But the President, busy with state affairs, left that promise to Wambugu’s seniors. And so, while Kibaki returned to his duties, Officer Wambugu went through hell and frustrations in the hands of his seniors..
Wambugu tried, again and again, to reach Kibaki. He never managed. He could not believe that he had been pushed out through an illegal, unprocedural, unconstitutional retirement, against his will and his fundamental rights.
Broken, frustrated, and defeated, Wambugu retreated to his rural home in Witima, Kahuro village, Othaya. Imagine that fall, a man who once moved with the powerful, now forgotten in the village. When he returned home, life became unbearable. School fees piled up. Family needs grew. Pain lived in his body every day. Hope disappeared. Even putting a meal for his family, owing to his condition became a nightmare. Each morning felt heavier than the last. Life became hell.
Still, he did not give up. He went to court, the Employment and Labour Relations Court at Milimani, seeking justice. Years passed. To date, the case has never been determined. He was told his file is missing. He believes it is not an accident.
Wambugu knocked on every door he could find. He wrote letters to the Director of Public Prosecutions, the Senate, the Ombudsman, the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights, Chief Justice, and many other offices. All he has been receiving are promises. Empty promises. Nothing changed.
To date, David Wambugu continues to languish, injured, forgotten, and abandoned. In deed Kenya is a man eat man society! A man who once protected a president, now struggling just to survive.
As you retire to bed tonight please meditate and imagine the kind of pain Dave Wambûgû Kararî has gone through for all those years from 2002, and suggest how we can help him to put a smile on his face. You can reach Mr Wambugu via 0722134878.
Wambugu has endured recurring depression, stress, intense psychological distress, and trauma from these experiences and life has not been easy.
As Othaya fraternity and well-wishers from all over Kenya, let us unite to assist our abandoned brother. Lets us hope that one day, justice will find him.
That one day, David Wambugu will smile again...
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