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'They monitored me from the air, deployed goons,’ Gachagua speaks of chaotic return
Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua is mobbed by supporters upon his arrival from the US at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport on Thursday.
DCP leader Rigathi Gachagua has broken his silence on the chaotic events surrounding his return to Kenya on Thursday, August 21, from a tour of America.
He said the state was to blame for the chaos that started upon his arrival at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport and continued as he and his entourage attempted to make their way to Kamukunji grounds to address a rally, but were unable to do so.
“I have heard Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen speak spitefully about us. I have heard him say he will investigate the violence we were subjected to,” said Mr Gachagua, dismissing any such efforts.
Speaking on Kameme FM on Friday, he said the Cabinet Secretary should “stop the hypocrisy and doublespeak”.
He claimed that the violence had been meticulously planned and that he had had to make emergency schedule adjustments to protect the lives and property of his supporters and innocent bystanders.
Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua leaves JKIA after this arrival on August 21, 2025.
He claimed that the plan involved aerial surveillance and thugs working together with a broader plan in parts of Mt Kenya to undermine his return.
Mr Murkomen, who has been holding security forums known as Jukwaa La Usalama in the Mt Kenya region, said on Friday that the government would investigate Thursday's violence, but also blamed the Gachagua camp.
Mr Gachagua said, "My plan was to be received at the airport, speak to those present, and then proceed with a road tour to meet people through Mombasa Road to the Central Business District of the capital city, where I would hold the mother of all rallies at Kamukunji grounds."
He added that the government had ensured this would not happen, and that the aerial surveillance had made it impossible for them to make tactical detours to fend off the goons.
Mr Gachagua dismissed critics who had referred to his return as a 'small event', questioning why so many resources had been spent trying to sabotage it if it was indeed inconsequential.
Addressing President William Ruto directly, he said: “As far as I can remember, I was supposed to be forgotten and irrelevant. Why do you and your colleagues keep talking about me? Why all the interest in a man who is no longer in office?"
Mr Gachagua said he was happy to have provided what he believed to be an accurate picture of the situation in Kenya during his tour of America.
"While in America, I explained to our people what is happening in President Ruto's government. As a former insider, they invited me to hear the truth first-hand. I told them that things are bad and that they should increase their support for their relatives back home," he said.
He said that he had visited seven states during his six-week tour, opening an equal number of DCP offices in each.
"They promised to help my truth crusade back here home. They even bought me the jeans I was wearing when I flew in here. They fully financed my stay in America and ensured I remained very happy," he said.
Mr Gachagua said that he is fully committed to the United Opposition, even though some political pundits saw his dramatic comeback as a reset for self-centred politics aimed at securing the wildcard presidential candidacy.
Read: Rigathi returns: Police clash with DCP leaders at JKIA, goons stone Gachagua convoy on Mombasa Road
"This is a game of friends united for the cause ahead. For avoidance of doubt, I am in the United Opposition together with earlier introduced principals. We are now about to roll out programmes that define us," he said.
Mr Gachagua added, “President Ruto and his men should not try to establish a strange Kenya where we have law for him and a different one for us. We will not be confined to the corner he is trying to herd us through brute force".
Mr Gachagua said he and other opposition leaders were determined to make Dr Ruto a one-term President in 2027.
