He was the butt of online jokes after West Pokot Governor John Lonyangapuo laughed at his physical attributes in a video that quickly went viral on social media.
Describing him as ‘Mulmulwas’, Prof Lonyangapuo described Dennis Ruto Kapchok as “Kijana mfupi amenona round, huwezi jua tumbo ni wapi mgongo ni wapi” (a short person with a round figure).
Prof Lonyangapuo was, in the 2019 clip, angry because Mr Kapchok had criticised his government for what the governor said were unfounded claims.
‘Mulmulwas’: Lonyangapuo’s hilarious speech
Two years later, Mr Kapchok is back in the news, this time with his guns pointed at Senate Majority Leader Samuel Poghisio.
Mr Kapchok, who has since joined Deputy President William Ruto-linked United Democratic Alliance (UDA), has declared his interest in West Pokot’s Senate seat, now occupied by Mr Poghisio.
Asked why he is gunning for the post, he says his objective is to push the youth agenda, even as he accused the senator of failing to ensure that the county gets more money for development.
A self-proclaimed ‘acting senator’, Mr Kapchok reckons that Mr Poghisio has not been performing his oversight role and claims he is chronically absent from the county.
“We have not been seeing the senator…We need him to move around. I am the ‘acting’ senator because the ‘sitting’ senator deserted his duties a long time ago,” Mr Kapchok told reporters in Kapenguria.
‘Mulmulwas’ declares his bid for West Pokot Senate seat
He insists that Mr Poghisio has wasted his chance as Senate majority leader, a position snatched from the DP’s ally and Elgeyo Marakwet Senator Kipchumba Murkomen.
Mr Kapchok, who ran for Lelan MCA on a Kanu ticket in 2017 and lost, says he is ready for the battle with the Kanu supremo.
“I will give Poghisio a run of his money,” he said.
But a defiant and confident Mr Poghisio has dismissed Mr Kapchok’s candidacy as a joke, saying he was no match for him.
“Those are pacemakers. Let him not think that I am like Lonyangapuo, whom he always jokes around with. Those are people looking for jobs not votes,” said Mr Poghisio of the latest entrant in a crowded Senate race.
Others eyeing Mr Poghisio’s seat in the 2022 elections are former East Africa Legislative Assembly member Augustine Monges Lotodo (Narc Kenya), former Kapenguria MP Julius Murgor (UDA), and West Pokot Pastoral Economy executive Geoffrey Lipale (KUP).
