Rotich exit follows script of jinxed Treasury office

The National Treasury, arguably the country's most influential ministerial docket, goes down in history as a hotbed of high yet disgraced turnover. 

While over the years the ministry's sway across government has been whittled down especially after the enactment of the 2010 Constitution, the country's money office wields immense power. 

On Monday, the fall of Henry Rotich from the helm of the National Treasury follows the same script of some of his predecessors whose tenures came down tumbling under clouds of allegations. 

For decades, the battle to control the purse strings since Independence has been marred with intrigues yet Rotich's six years tenure in charge of the exchequer is one of the longest in the country's history. 

However, his tenure ties with Arthur Magugu's (1982-88) and the first Finance chief James Gichuru's (1963-69) but behind retired President Mwai Kibaki who headed Treasury for 12 years between 1969 and 1981.  

The shortest stint at Treasury remains that of Francis Masakhalia, who lasted seven months between February and August 1999 amid a stuttering economy. 

President Uhuru Kenyatta, who was in charge at the Treasury for three years (2009-12) as well as doubling as deputy Prime Minister, settled for Rotich as a trusted insider when appointing his Cabinet in 2013.

The soft-spoken, affable and self-effacing man had spent the better part of his career as a back office bureaucrat at the CBK and the National Treasury before the Jubilee government rode to power. 

Rotich's first stint was at the research department of the CBK, which he joined in 1994, later being attached to the Nairobi office of the IMF to work as an economist between 2001 and 2004.

From 2006 until his appointment as Finance Minister, Rotich was the head of macroeconomics at the Ministry of Finance.

Many argue that Rotich mostly cuts the image of an amiable and approachable Cabinet Secretary, a stark contrast to many of his colleagues who grunt with power and influence whenever they make public appearances. 

Despite the distinguished virtues, the CS, like many of his predecessors, followed a shameful and controversy-ridden path that pushed them out of office in the middle of huge storms. 

Former minister Amos Kimunya who served during Mwai Kibaki's government between 2006-08 left office in the hail of the Grand Regency Hotel saga. 

Kimunya, who had earlier told his supporters in his backyard that "I would die rather than resign", was forced to quit to pave the way for investigations into the hotel sale scandal that roiled his tenure.

The former minister (now MP Kipipiri) was later moved to the Ministry of Trade.

Anglo Leasing scandal

On February 1, 2006, President Kibaki lost his first Finance minister, David Mwiraria, three years into his first term. 

He had been appointed after Kibaki won the 2002 presidential elections.

Mwiraria was pushed out of office after he was implicated in a report by then Ethics and Governance PS John Githongo over the Anglo Leasing scandal.

Mwiraria claimed he was misled by his permanent secretary at the time to authorise Sh7 billion tenders for procurement of Kenya Police forensic laboratories and a sophisticated passport equipment system. 

Known to be one of President Kibaki’s most vicious defenders, Mwiraria went down protesting his innocence and was subsequently cleared of any wrongdoing and reappointed into the Cabinet.

The ex-minister has since died. 

As the Anglo Leasing scandal brought down heavyweight Chris Obure who served as Finance minister between 2001-02. He was charged over the saga said to have been hatched during the Moi era and executed during the Kibaki regime.

The accused denied charges of abuse of office and conspiracy to commit economic crimes.

The Anglo Leasing affair, which involved contracts awarded to phantom firms, shocked Kenyans when it was revealed in 2004.

The late former Finance minister George Saitoti was at the helm of the National Treasury during the height of the 1991-93 Goldenberg scandal.

However, as the scandal roiled on, Saitoti's culpability was never established for decades after a commission of inquiry chaired by Justice Samuel Bosire cleared him. 

A three-judge bench headed by Justice Joseph Nyamu issued a certiorari order clearing Saitoti of any wrongdoing, expunging his name from the Bosire Commission Report and issuing an order on permanent stay of prosecution against him. 

In 2009, President Kenyatta while serving as Finance minister and deputy PM, was under pressure to resign over a Sh10 billion discrepancy in his supplementary budget.

He was forced to withdraw the supplementary budget and table a fresh one. 

But unlike his predecessors, Uhuru would later resign not because of allegations of corruption but crimes against humanity after International Criminal Court ruled that he would stand trial over the 2007-08 post-election violence.

Edited by R.Wamochie