Cherargei: It’s Uhuru who formed MAT to fight graft, not Ruto
Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei has, in point-blank faulted Kenyans who are accusing President William Ruto of illegally forming a Multi-Agency Team (MAT) to combat the war on graft.
Speaking during an interview with a local TV station on Thursday, August 21, 2025, Cherargei said the team was first established by the immediate former President Uhuru Kenyatta and not by Ruto.
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Cherargei, who once chaired the Justice and Legal Affairs Committee (JLAC), clarified that he engaged with the MAT during Uhuru Kenyatta’s administration.
“On the issue of MAT, by the way, the Multi-Agency Team, let us be factual, in the former regime, when I was chair of JLAC, I used to meet MAT, which was formed by former President Uhuru Kenyatta, I used to meet AG Kihara Kariuki then,” Cherargei explained.
He further emphasised that the team’s current collaboration with President Ruto should not be mistaken for a new initiative.
“When you see MAT working with President William Ruto, it is mostly on advisory matters.
“It is not in the real investigation and prosecution of corruption in this country. When Ruto formed this MAT, it was for having a coordinated fight in the way of graft,” the Nandi Senator said.
Senate oversight role
Cherargei also took the opportunity to challenge claims made by former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, who had argued that the Senate does not oversee counties.
According to the legislator, this statement was misleading. “I heard the former PM, when he said that the Senate doesn’t oversee the counties, I laughed because I thought it was a bad joke.
The constitution says the Senate determines the allocation of revenues to counties through the division of revenue,” he said.
His remarks come in the wake of heightened debate over President Ruto’s recent push to reinvigorate the fight against corruption, including the role of Parliament and agencies tasked with tackling graft.
Cherargei maintained that while the president can coordinate with MAT, the real investigative and prosecutorial powers remain with established accountability agencies such as the EACC, DPP, and DCI.
