Gachagua to President Ruto: With time I will expose you to Kenyans
What you need to know:
- Speaking during an interview on NTV, Mr Gachagua accused the president of running a one-man show government hellbent on racketeering. He said there is only one year for President Ruto's rule to redeem itself.
- He spoke highly of Wiper Party boss Mr Kalonzo Musyoka whom he rated as "a man we can work with...we are in talks, our communities are engaging him and have since been incorporated into our cultural grouping...certainly we have no problem working with him".
On Sunday night, Former Deputy Rigathi Gachagua declared he would expose President William Ruto to Kenyans, insisting their fallout was because he was questioning some unpopular policies that upset the Head of State.
Mr Gachagua said he now understands why former president Uhuru Kenyatta did not deem it wise to support Dr Ruto (who was Kenyatta's deputy since 2013) in the 2022 Presidential race.
Mr Kenyatta had instead supported the opposition boss Mr Raila Odinga who went ahead to lose to Dr Ruto with a 200,000 vote deficit (7.2 million against 7 million votes).
Mr Gachagua who had broken ranks with Mr Kenyatta and led a team of Mt Kenya renegades to support Dr Ruto, was nominated as the running mate and went ahead to deliver the region's 87 percent of area votes to the winning side.
But after Gachagua served Dr Ruto as deputy president for two years, he was impeached on October 17, 2024, and replaced with Prof Kithure Kindiki.
Now, Mr Gachagua says he is not regretful to have supported Dr Ruto since it has turned out to be a learning experience, albeit painful.
"I am happy now that he (President Ruto) has come to confirm the many negative things Mr Kenyatta used to tell us in private about his Deputy...then, I used to doubt the issues raised...but not any longer," he said.
President William Ruto.
Mr Gachagua said he is now happy that he has come to know who President Ruto is.
"…He is not a man I can dare deal with as a Christian…given another opportunity to engage him, I would deal with him as a politician…he has given me an opportunity to serve, know him better, gain experience and as we move along, I will ensure people of Kenya get to know who he is,” Gachagua said.
He said most of his political statements will start filtering out in February after he concludes consulting with stakeholders in Mt Kenya region and eventually announce the roadmap to 2027 duel as president Ruto guns for a second term, Gachagua and company opposing.
Speaking during an interview on NTV, Mr Gachagua accused the president of running a one-man show government hellbent on racketeering. He said there is only one year for President Ruto's rule to redeem itself.
He spoke highly of Wiper Party boss Mr Kalonzo Musyoka whom he rated as "a man we can work with...we are in talks, our communities are engaging him and have since been incorporated into our cultural grouping...certainly we have no problem working with him".
Also Read: How Rigathi Gachagua's hotel room was bugged
He said President Ruto's government is daring the wrath of Kenyans unless it pulled out a miracle to win favour.
"There is just about one year for the president to make things work...the economy is not working as he says...ask around the business space and you will get a feedback," he said.
Mr Gachagua said the government needed not to announce how the economy is performing since it is the people who are supposed to report back by affirming that they can feel the effects of a good economy.
He further accused the Head of State of micromanaging State pacts with partners, especially in high-budget commitments like the Adani deals as well as opting to bypass upgrading the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) infrastructure at a cheaper cost of Sh700 or Sh800 million.
"Instead, the government went for the Social Health Insurance Fund at a cost of Sh104 billion which is a rip off and which is leading to more family and patient frustrations than is serving the common good," he said.
On abductions
Mr Gachagua was very passionate about the claimed culture of abductions, extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, and persecutions by suspected state agencies.
He revealed that the vices that trashed Bill of Rights led him to hold a parallel state address on June 26, 2024, regarding Gen Z protests soon after President Ruto had held his.
Youth across the country on June 25 launched countrywide protests against Finance Bill 2025 that they felt contained draconian tax measures.
In a daredevil move, the protesters raided the National Assembly and set part of it on fire as well as damaged properties.
Police attempt to restrain demonstrators along Parliament Road in Nairobi during the anti-Finance Bill protests of June 25, 2024.
Mr Gachagua said President Ruto was consuming outright lies from his security chiefs on the status of the protests instead of security agents.
Of concern to Gachagua, he said, was the fact that the president had taken it upon himself to brand the protestors as treasonous criminals whereas they were genuine Kenyans expressing a valid displeasure against their government that they felt was not listening to them.
“It forced me to take the unprecedented action to have the press conference after the President's…This country is sliding into a dictatorship and a police state…the administration cannot take dissent,” he said.
Mr Gachagua said he felt sorry that the President had bought the 'lies' that the security agencies had fed him, convincing him that the protests were the work of people interested in overthrowing his government.
Mr Gachagua appeared to still have a soft spot for the president.
“Our differences aside, I feel sorry for the President since he has been a case of being misled by security agencies. As a Christian, I felt sorry for my boss. I even sat him down and advised him to cease denying that people were being abducted and murdered…I told him people were uncomfortable with the denial since the cases were there,” he said.
“Much as the President has been unfair to me, as a Christian sometimes I feel for him because of these matters abductions. I sat him down and told him Mr President, look, do not deny these abductions because they are going on," he said.
He added that he told the President that "these security chiefs of yours are cheating you and they are setting you against the people of Kenya and this is why the people believe that you are a liar,” he said.
“These abductions are taking place daily and they are recorded…I really tried to plead with the President not to defend the abductions and murders… When the Inspector General of Police says there are no abductions, are not being done by the police…who then is doing it? Why has he not arrested the people doing it?”.
