Former President Daniel Moi, John Magufuli, Nicholas Biwott, former President Uhuru Kenyatta and President William Ruto.
Once Captain Charles Wachira flew then minister Nicholas Biwott, popularly known as ‘Total Man,’ to Eldoret. Upon landing, there was a fuel truck on standby to refuel the helicopter. After refueling, the truck driver handed the keys to Biwott who drove away alone. That was vintage Biwott. Ever paranoid. Never stuck to a routine. A master of surprises. It was never clear why he was ever apprehensive. He hardly dropped guard.
The late Nicholas Biwott.
Captain Wachira had got used to his odd manners. And he had struck a rapport with Biwott that most people found astonishing. It was unusual for the Kanu minister who was ever looking over his shoulders to trust somebody. Anyone, not the least his pilot. “He never had a watch or a mobile phone,” Wachira recalls his interactions with the Keiyo South MP he flew most times. If Biwott wanted to make a call, he would reach out to whomever was around him, even a stranger, and borrow a phone. He would dial, engage in a conversation and then politely ask you to delete the number he had called. Then he would reward you generously for the trouble.
“Even when travelling, I never saw him haul a suitcase. But if you were booked in a hotel, you will always see him with a change of clothes,” says Wachira who retired as a Major in 1986. When Biwott was building a house at a remote part in Kerio Valley, Wachira often flew him there. But the chopper would land further away from the site and they would have to drive to the place. “Sometimes we would hitch a ride at the back of rickety trucks. I particularly remember one that was so weather-beaten that it felt like it would disintegrate anytime,” he reminisces with a chuckle.
Tense moments
The only time the two had some tense moments was sometime in November 1991. Biwott and powerful Internal Security permanent secretary Hezekiah Oyugi had been arrested as prime suspects in the death of Foreign Affairs minister Robert Ouko. Retired British detective John Troon, who had been tasked by President Moi to conduct an independent inquiry, had implicated them in the killing. Ouko had been reported missing from his Koru home in Muhoroni on February 12, 1990. His charred, mutilated body was found at Got Alila on February 16.
Major (Rtd) Munyeki Wachira gestures during the interview on July 30, 2024.
Wachira recalls some strange men came calling at Wilson airport. They invoked Biwott’s name telling him they wanted him to accompany them to an undisclosed location. But he resisted. They left. Then a phone call came through. It was Biwott on the other end of the line. Apparently, some days prior, Wachira had flown Biwott and he was keen about a reminder about that day’s itinerary. He was sort of building an alibi. It still puzzles Wachira to this day from where Biwott was calling from. He was supposed to be in police cells that have no fixed lines! Biwott and Oyugi protested their innocence. Oyugi died in 1992. In September 2020, his family claimed Oyugi was poisoned. They said one of UK’s top neurosurgeon who treated him in his last days linked Oyugi’s strange illness to a poison common with Soviet-era spies. Biwott had earlier died in June 2020.
Wachira also has fond memories of his times as former President Moi’s pilot. As president, he flew him on a private chopper he had bought from the United Kingdom for use during multi-party campaigns in 1992 and 1997. President Moi had been barred from misusing military aircraft during presidential campaigns.
The late President Daniel Arap Moi.
He particularly remembers Moi’s gesture when he (Wachira) had an accident. “He sent a vehicle to fetch me and take me to State House. There he gave me some money to buy soup to heal faster. He told me; ‘kijana yanga (my son), always believe in God and be going to Church,” Wachira recalls Moi telling him. He was no stranger to the president though. In 1983, he received a head of state’s commendation (military division) from President Moi for his role as an army helicopter gunship pilot in quelling the 1982 coup. After Moi retired in 2002, he flew him on several occasions.
During presidential campaigns in 2002, when President Moi had chosen Mr Uhuru Kenyatta as his preferred successor, Wachira recalls his encounter with candidate Kenyatta.
Former President Uhuru Kenyatta at a past event.
“He particularly enjoyed listening to KBC’s Sundowner show. The music really soothed him,” he reminisces, referring to music by renowned artistes of oldies like Kenny Rogers, Don Williams, Lionel Richie, Michael Jackson, Dolly Parton, Jim Reeves and Roger Whitaker. According to Wachira, Kenyatta didn’t appear under pressure during the grueling campaigns for the presidency that he subsequently lost to Mwai Kibaki. “He wasn’t too serious about it and he didn’t take the loss in a bad way,” adds Wachira of the man who would later succeed President Kibaki in 2013 and rule for 10 years.
Forceful person
During Kenyatta’s first term, Wachira had the privilege to fly his deputy president William Ruto. He describes Ruto as a forceful person. “If he wants something done, he will ensure it’s done his way,” he says.
President William Ruto.
He cited two incidents when he encountered Ruto’s stubborn nature. “Twice he had insisted that I fly him from Kericho after the cut-off time (the latest time a helicopter can take off to ensure it reaches the destination before nightfall),” Wachira recalls. Thankfully, Ruto heeded to the pilot’s advice and on the two occasions went back by road. However, he says Ruto is among the jovial guests to fly- and quite generous too.
Tanzania's President John Pombe Magufuli.
The other guest he flew with a strong character is Tanzania’s Pombe Magufuli as minister before he rose to the presidency. One time, as minister, Magufuli had been tasked to lead the ruling party’s campaigns at a local election. In the course of the flight, he was coaching the party’s candidate on what to say on the campaign platform. “Remember also sometimes you have to give promises, never mind whether you will keep them, just to win. That’s the nature of campaigns. If you don’t, you will be outsmarted by your opponent who will sweet talk their way into voters’ hearts,” Wachira recollects Magufuli telling the candidate.
President Magufuli died in March 2021 aged 61 from heart complications at a hospital in Dar es Salaam. He had not been seen in public for more than two weeks, and rumours had been circulating about his health in the middle of a Covid-19 pandemic that he had denounced. Other Tanzania’s presidents Wachira has flown are Jakaya Kikwete (as minister) and Benjamin Mkapa (in retirement).
