WHY RICHARD NGATIA IS UNFIT TO BE PRESIDENT OF (KNCCI)

A story posted on the website ‘’Kenya Digest’’ claiming that current President of Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KNCCI) Richard Ngatia was selling Chinese billionaire Jack Ma’s coronavirus equipment donations to Kenyans with the help of top Kenyan government officials was one of the most trending topics on the internet last week.

Mr Richard Ngatia

                                    But who is this Richard Ngatia?

The Weekly Vision online brings you details that have, hitherto not been in the public domain.

As mentioned above Mr Ngatia is the President of Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KNCCI) having taken over from Mr Kiprono Kittony in May of 2019. He runs several businesses among them Galileo Lounge, a high-end entertainment joint in Nairobi: Serviscope Ltd & Megascope Ltd medical equipment supplying companies. Another of Ngati's firm is Life Care Medics Ltd, which he co-owns with billionaire businessman Paul Ndung'u, who is widely known courtesy of his Mobicom Ltd, the country’s largest mobile telecommunications dealer.

Apparently, Life Care Medics Ltd was in the news in 2016 as among the firms that were implicated in the infamous Ksh5.6 billion Afya House scandal in which it was alleged to have been paid Ksh200 million for Mobile clinics containers that have never been delivered to date.

Kamlesh Pattni is seen here talking to the late
Robert Mugabe then president of Zimbabwe

There is a strong feeling among a large section of the business community within the country who argue that Mr Ngatia is unfit to hold the position of President of KNCCI on grounds of integrity. Over the years, Mr Ngatia is said to have maintained very strong business ties with disgraced businessman Kamlesh Pattni who nearly collapsed the Kenyan economy in the 1990s with fake gold export compensation scheme.

Kamlesh Pattni is now being blamed for the virtual collapse of the gold mining industry in Zimbabwe. Mr Ngatia’s past dirty dealings with Pattni is making a section of Kenyans uncomfortable in his presidency at KNCCI.

Through Kamlesh Pattni, Mr Ngatia was allegedly Involved in money laundering activities through his Galileo club. The club initially occupied space within the Pattni owned International Casino grounds before the club moved to its present location on Waiyaki way. Money laundering is a serious offence according to existing International laws as highlighted in the UN International Convention on Transnational Organized Crimes. It must be remembered that Pattni once owned a bank, Exchange Bank, that was shut down by the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) over money laundering charges.

How Ngatia rose from a struggling barber at Corner House then later as taxi driver based at the International Casino is still a mystery to many, but It is from here that a strong bond developed between him and Pattni. It’s claimed that Pattni gave him money to set up an office at the old Afya House (near globe cinema) to supply medical equipment. The sole aim was to use the company to clean money in the name of being a supplier of medical equipment.

 Ngatias appetite for a quick buck are legendary, he even defrauded a close family friend a modern state of the art car washing machine which the businessman was operating inside the premises of Club Galileo under a lease agreement.

Similarly, his ugly past has its footprints at the Department of Public Works whereby at one time he bribed senior Works officials to edge out businessman C.K Villa from lucrative tenders at the ministry.

It is quite surprising that a man of such crooked background is now the face of Kenya's business community - locally and abroad. Globally, the position of the President of KNCCI is equated to a country's topmost trade envoy/ambassador. The holder must always be above reproach!!