The construction of the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) was set to cost Ksh55 billion from Mombasa to Malaba, businessman Jimmy Wanjigi has revealed.
Speaking to Citizen TV on Sunday night, Wanjigi revealed that he was the SGR mastermind alongside the China Road and Bridge Corporation.
The project was to be done and operated as a private entity with minimal or no government involvement, Wanjigi said.
“SGR was a project birthed by me in 2008 alongside China Road and Bridge Corporation. The intention was that the rail was a private project, with nothing to do with the government. The government was only to provide the land. SGR was to cost Ksh55 billion from Mombasa to Malaba,” said Wanjigi.
Read: Tycoon Jimmy Wanjigi Appeals Court Order to Pay Sh1.37 Million for Luxury Clothing
According to Wanjigi, he was later baffled to learn that the railway line cost the taxpayers Ksh330 billion from Mombasa to Nairobi, while the section from Nairobi to Naivasha cost at least Ksh185 billion.
Wanjigi claims that he helped unite President Uhuru Kenyatta and his Deputy William Ruto, before they later differed on “policy”.
“Businessmen find solutions to problems; I was invited during post-election violence to find a solution to the unification of two warring communities played at the time by ICC. I was solving problems, I helped unify two parties,” he said.
Wanjigi however denied allegations that he has ever done business with the government.
This story is being updated:-
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