Nairobi News

Embattled Cabinet Secretary for Sports Rashid Echesa recently stated that he doesn’t need an appointment to visit Deputy President William Ruto’s Harambee Annex office within Nairobi’s CBD.

He wasn’t lying.

CCTV footage released by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) on Thursday laid bare how Echesa, whom DCI boss George Kinoti describes as a ‘cartel’, was received and ushered in the DP’s office with respect and dignity befitting a very important person.

The footage shows Echesa arriving at the office in a Range Rover and the moment the police officer at the gate notices he salutes and opens the gates without any inquiries.

And when the Range Rover finally accesses the Harambee Annex main parking lot, it is parked at a designated area within a shade.

So highly regarded is Echesa within this premises that his colleagues who were visiting the office on the same mission could not access this lot. Instead, they had to make do with the parking behind the building.

Inside Harambee Annex, the footage shows Echesa being warmly welcomed by two female receptionists and an armed guard.

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One of the receptionists then leads Echesa and his colleagues towards the VIP lift and up to the second floor and appears to remain in the lift for the duration of Echesa’s stay there.

On his way back at the ground floor, Echesa is seen reaching into his right-hand side trouser pocket and handing over what appears to be a ‘tip’ to the receptionist.

Echesa and Dr Ruto are known to be close political friends.

But Echesa’s reputation is probably his biggest undoing.

He once fought at a political rally and is currently being linked to a series of scandals including a fake arms tender deal, impersonation and being in possession of cars whose registration are suspected to be forged.

Echesa was also linked with the killings in his home turf of Matungu in Kakamega county last year. He was arrested by police but later released without being charged in court.