Murang’a Governor Irungu Kang’ata has strongly denied explosive allegations linking him to a controversial petition that allegedly included names of his former Senate staffers as fake relatives of victims in the 2019 Ethiopian Airlines crash.

The accusations, brought to light in an NTV investigation, claimed that names of two of Kang’ata’s former staff—Davis Mburu Karanja and Peter Njuguna—were fraudulently added to a list seeking compensation for the crash that killed 157 people, including 32 Kenyans.

Both Karanja and Njuguna expressed shock at seeing their names associated with the petition, insisting they had no ties to the victims and had never consented to any such filing.

In a swift rebuttal, Governor Kang’ata issued a statement asserting that no compensation was paid to the eight individuals listed in the petition, and emphasized that the matter was settled years ago. “None have complained. None of the eight mentioned were compensated,” he said, calling the allegations “misleading and malicious.”

Kang’ata, a lawyer by profession, defended his involvement in the petition as a pro bono effort to help real victims navigate legal channels. He reiterated his commitment to public service and called on the media to report responsibly.

As public scrutiny intensifies, the spotlight is now on the verification process of compensation claims and whether others may have taken advantage of the tragedy for financial gain.