Kenyatta’s death caused by neglect, says ex press chief

• Njiru paints a disturbing picture of Mzee Kenyatta as too sick to govern in a close-typed five-page statement released to the press on Saturday.
• He says there was no resident physician or cardiologist at his side at the time of Kenyatta's death.
• his is probably the first time Mr Njiru is issuing a statement without Mr Moi’s authority.

This surprised me because Mbiyu was not only Mzee Kenyatta’s minister and confidant but also his brother-in law. But it was after lunch that things became terrifying.

Mzee missed his way out, and ended at the dingy caretaker’s office where he caused a commotion among the junior staff as the room was littered with dirty utensils and food leftovers.

When he was redirected to his sleeping room, the old man could not make it upstairs. In between the flight of stairs, he ran out of breath and asked for a chair. After a brief rest, he went to his private quarters.

After witnessing all this agony, I was convinced that Mbiyu Koinange or the PC Eliud Mahihu or the State House Comptroller Alexander Gitau would cancel the Msambweni function.

They didn’t. I believe that Kenyatta’s life would have been saved if immediate medical attention was made available.

Forgotten flywhisk

When Mzee’s motorcade reached the Likoni Jetty, he refused to board the ferry. Reason? He had forgotten his flywhisk. A car was dispatched to bring it after which we proceeded to Msambweni.

After Mzee Kenyatta collapsed, a senior member of the administration had the callousness to ask him to say “Harambee”.

But it was the loudest I had heard during the last two years I had worked for him. Unfortunately, it was the last.

After Kenyatta was taken to State House and the customary night entertainment programme cancelled, Mbiyu boarded a plane and left for Nairobi.

The question I always ask myself is “what issues were more urgent and compelling on the part of Mbiyu than Mzee Kenyatta’s health?”

He had helped Kenyatta stand after collapsing. It was unbelievable that he would abandon him in such circumstances.

I expected Koinange, Mahihu and Gitau to attempt to go, even beyond the frontiers of their persuasive powers to prevail upon Mzee Kenyatta not to go to Msambweni.

The other option was deceit. They could have conspired and told Mzee that the Likoni Ferry was broken down.

Although I could discern that nobody was paying any attention to Kenyatta’s condition, I kept mum arising from operand condition imposed on us by the inner circle through blatant and subtle threats. Talk of Kenyatta’s health was a taboo.