Cherargei Denies Demanding shs. 3 million Bribe from Embattled First Choice CEO

Kapsabet June Monday, 19, 2023,

KNA by Laban Kiplimo/Geoffrey Satia

Nandi County Senator Samson Cherargei has refuted claims that he demanded Sh 3 million bribe from First Choice Recruitment and Consultancy Agency CEO Ms. Judy Chepchirchir in order to protect the agency from the senate committee investigating swindling claims in the agency.

This is according to his official Facebook Account.

The agency which first came to the limelight three months ago following swindling complaints from its clients connects aspiring candidates wishing to live, work and study in foreign countries including Canada, Poland, Qatar, France, Germany, Spain, Australia, Saudi Arabia, and Italy.

One particular client Mr. Lawrence Nzuki claims that he paid the company to connect him with a Polish University but the deal did not materialize as the company claimed it was no longer on good terms with the University.

The company then offered Mr. Nzuki a compromise stating that it would secure him a job in Poland as opposed to an opportunity to study, a deal that Nzuki graciously accepted. Nzuki says that the deal again backfired when the company offered him fake insurance papers to present at the embassy.

Despite the company denying the accusations, the complaints coming from about 500 youths that the company failed to honor its pledge to connect them with jobs in Qatar during the world cup forced the Senate Standing Committee on Labour and Social Welfare to investigate the matter.

The committee chaired by Pokot Senator Julius Murgor met with the officials from the First Choice Agency on the 14th of March 2023 led by the company’s CEO Ms. Judy Chepchirchir.

After a lengthy engagement, the Committee resolved to carry out a fact-finding visit in Eldoret where all the petitioners and other stakeholders relevant to the petition would be invited. 

The members of the committee set to visit Eldoret to investigate the matter included Nandi County Senators Samson Cherargei, George Mbugua, Crystal Asige, Faki Mohamed, Miraj Abdulrahman, and Alexander Mundigi.

After the March meeting, matters cooled down until Sunday the 18th of June when a screenshot of a conversation supposedly between Senator Cherargei and a close associate of Ms. Judy the CEO showing the senator asking for Sh 3M protection fee surfaced on Nandi County social media platforms.

The phone number captured in the screenshot asking for money registers the name “Cherarkey Samson” when one conducts an M-pesa transaction with the phone number.

Verification of the phone number through the “True Caller” services registers the name “Senator Cherargei Kiprotich.”

In the conversation captured in the screenshot, the senator allegedly states that Ms. Judy knows how he (the senator) is protecting her from the Chairperson of the committee and the members.

“Give me Shs.3 million I take care of the chair and members, anything after Tuesday I will not accept it,” states the individual identified as the senator.

Following the circulation of the screenshot on Nandi County’s social media platforms, senator Cherargei took to social media to distance himself from the screenshot stating that it is fake.

“Ignore this propaganda! These are desperate individuals who are used to doing propaganda, blackmail, and intimidation,” stated Senator Cherargei on Facebook.

“To the victims of the alleged conning by First Choice Recruitment agency plus their families, Justice will be served in the fullness of time,” added Senator Cherargei.

The senator’s response elicited mixed reactions among Nandi County residents with some supporting the senator and while others claimed that an innocent person would have ignored the screenshot as opposed to responding to it.

Efforts to reach Mrs. Judy for comment bore no fruits.

Courtesy ; K. N. A