The owners of Business Bay Square (BBS Mall) in Nairobi’s Eastleigh area have called on the National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) to investigate, censure, and recommend prosecution over statements made by former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, which they claim constitute ethnic contempt, hate speech, and actions undermining national unity and cohesion
In a detailed letter to NCIC Chairperson Dr. Samuel Kobia, the mall’s owners, through MMA Advocates, accused Gachagua of making inflammatory and defamatory statements during a church service on January 4, 2026, at AIPCA Kiratina Church in Githunguri, Kiambu County
The complaint alleges that Gachagua claimed funds stolen in a fraud scheme in Minnesota, United States, were transferred to Kenya, invested in Eastleigh properties, and used to construct a shopping mall
BBS Mall Owners Seek NCIC Action Over Gachagua Remarks Citing Ethnic Contempt000
He further suggested that the alleged beneficiaries were connected to senior political figures and called on former US President Donald Trump to bypass extradition procedures and forcibly arrest the individuals in Kenya
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Although Gachagua did not explicitly name BBS Mall, the owners argue that any ordinary listener would reasonably understand the remarks as referring to their property, given its prominence and location in Eastleigh
They say the statements, made without evidence or due process, have seriously damaged the mall’s reputation and commercial interests.
“Our clients do not object to public discussion of crime or matters of public interest,” the advocates said
“Their complaint is confined to the manner, framing, and foreseeable effects of the remarks, which invite conclusions of collective ethnic and commercial culpability”
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The letter states that repeated references to Eastleigh amounted to a “thinly veiled attribution of criminality” to the Somali ethnic community and Somali-owned businesses, contrary to the Constitution and the National Cohesion and Integration Act
The BBS Mall owners cited Articles 27, 28, and 33 of the Constitution, which protect equality and dignity and prohibit hate speech, as well as Section 13 of the NCIC Act, which criminalises speech intended to incite ethnic hatred
They warn that the remarks threaten relationships with tenants, banks, insurers, employees, and regulators, with the harm compounded by Gachagua’s status as a former high-ranking constitutional officeholder.
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The owners are demanding that NCIC investigate the remarks fully, determine whether they constitute ethnic contempt or hate speech, issue appropriate censure, and refer the matter for prosecution where warranted
They have also urged the Commission to caution media houses against uncritical amplification of divisive statements capable of inciting ethnic animosity
“This demand is made in the public interest,” the letter states, adding that any failure or delay by the Commission could raise concerns about its constitutional and statutory mandate
