President William Ruto has embarked on a strategy to neutralise his former deputy Rigathi Gachagua and regain his ‘waning’ grip on Mt Kenya politics, amid a growing wave of discontent in the region.
Following Mr Gachagua’s impeachment in October last year, the Head of State has had to come to terms with growing hostility against his Kenya Kwanza administration in a region that largely backed his bid in the 2022 election.
He has since laid out at least five key strategies as part of efforts to solidify his authority in the restive region.
These include tapping into Deputy President Kithure Kindiki to pacify the region, organising meetings with various stakeholders to address key issues in the region, rolling out plans for the economic revitalisation of the region, the place of former president Uhuru Kenyatta and his allies brought into the Cabinet, and the Maina Njenga factor, a new-found ally of the government.
Prof Kindiki, in a rare and terse statement last Sunday, warned his predecessor Mr Gachagua and his allies over what he termed as incitement of Kenyans against the government.
“Leadership is not about bragging... it’s about offering solutions. When God blesses you with an opportunity to serve, and you start abusing other leaders. That is wrong. We will not allow anybody to go around inciting Kenyans and complaining about problems without offering solutions. No! We will not allow that to continue,” the Deputy President warned.
Prof Kindiki has since planned a series of meetings with various stakeholders in Mt Kenya region to try to pacify the area and its diaspora.
He has also been tasked to oversee tea and coffee reforms, a role that was being handled by Mr Gachagua before his ouster.
And on Wednesday, Prof Kindiki held a meeting on tea reforms, seeking approaches to open up new export markets for Kenyan tea. The meeting was attended by various government officials and concerned agencies.
“The government is supporting tea production through providing subsidised fertiliser, establishment of common user facilities for value addition and exploring new markets. These measures, a favourable weather and a strong currency, have seen tea production increase from 445 million kilos in 2022 to 558 million kilos in 2023 and to 600 million kilos in 2024. Export earnings rose from Sh138 billion in 2022 to Sh181 billion in 2023 and to Sh211 billion in 2024,” the DP said.
The meeting came hot on the heels of another one held on Monday in which the DP met some 143 representatives of small-scale business people operating within markets in Nairobi County.
They included representatives of traders from Wakulima, Gikomba, Muthurwa and Kariokor markets, Country Bus, Nyamakima, River Road, Railways, Pumwani Road, Bus Station and OTC.
Mr Gachagua had in September last year organised his troops for a rally at Wakulima market where he launched a scathing attack on Governor Johnson Sakaja and the Ruto administration over what he termed as “undermining Mt Kenya traders in Nairobi”.
“When we were campaigning at Wakulima market, there were a lot of people and no one had a problem. After receiving many votes, they are now claiming that there is a congestion problem in the CBD,” Mr Gachagua alleged then.
Prof Kindiki has since taken the initiative to reach out to the traders and help the county government address their plight, a move seen as an attempt to dilute possible Gachagua influence among them.
President Ruto is also keen on the economic revitalisation of the region, targeting agriculture, where he has promised to boost coffee and milk production for the sake of the local farmers.
In his State of the Nation address last year, President Ruto said his administration was on track to increase coffee exports from 51,000 metric tonnes to 150,000 metric tonnes by 2027.
“The government has also raised disbursements through the Cherry Advance Fund from Sh2.7 billion to Sh6 billion, complemented by an additional disbursement of Sh1.5 billion by the Commodities Fund,” he said.
The President says that at least 320,000 bags of fertiliser have been allocated specifically for the coffee sector.
He also revealed that the government had released Sh3 billion to modernise the New Kenya Co-operative Creameries (KCC), ensure farmers are paid on time, and maintain a high price of Sh50 per litre.
“Other strategic interventions include the extension of duty-free imports for feed manufacturing raw materials, subsidised artificial insemination services, and the reduction of sexed semen costs from Sh7,000 to Sh2,900 through the Kenya Animal Genetic Resource Center.”
These measures, he noted, have since boosted the value of exported dairy products.
Through his broad-based government strategy, President Ruto has also reached out to his predecessor Uhuru Kenyatta, who backed opposition chief Raila Odinga in the 2022 elections, for support amid Mr Gachagua’s onslaught.
President Ruto has tapped Mr Mutahi Kagwe, who served in Mr Kenyatta’s Cabinet, to take charge of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development.
He also nominated former Nakuru Governor Lee Kinyanjui, another close ally of Mr Kenyatta, to the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry.
Former Kiambu Governor William Kabogo also landed a ministerial nomination after he was picked to serve as Information, Communication and Digital Economy Cabinet Secretary.
The President says he will continue to expand his broad-based government this year in his efforts to bring political and economic stability.
In a move that appears to have further unsettled Mr Gachagua and his allies, a recent statement by former Mungiki leader Maina Njenga, declaring that he would confront the former DP head-on, is seen as a sign of a new working relationship between the former gang leader and President Ruto.
Speaking at Kabiru-ini stadium in Nyeri town, where hundreds of youth congregated to declare support for President Ruto and his deputy Kindiki last month, Mr Njenga said he was in communication with the region’s kingpins, including Mr Kenyatta, who he said was aware of the meeting.
And in what appeared to be preparing the ground for President Ruto and his deputy’s charm offensive to the Mt Kenya region, Mr Njenga told the youth to welcome the leaders when they visit.
He said the former DP would not be allowed to continue claiming that the region was sidelined by Dr Ruto’s government whereas several individuals were occupying senior positions in the administration.
Mr Njenga taunted Mr Gachagua, reminding him that “those who fought us are now out of government,” referring to his tribulations when he was arrested and charged with illegal possession of firearms. Mr Gachagua was at the time vocal in criticising Mr Njenga.
“They said they would deploy the police to ensure that we don’t step into this region. The same policemen are the ones guarding us as we hold our meeting today,” he said in December.
The venue of his rally was heavily secured by a contingent of police officers who patrolled the stadium and its vicinity, contrary to the past when his rallies were dispersed by police.
Mr Gachagua has accused president Ruto of using divide and rule tactics to win over the Mt Kenya region’s support, saying his schemes will fall flat.
The former DP last week lashed out at his former boss and vowed not to allow him to divide the region. Mr Gachagua also claimed that he fell out with Dr Ruto when he prevented him from splitting the region.
“The President wanted to divide the region in two, East and West, but I told him off. That is why he forced me out of the government,” he said.
The West of the region is a general reference to Central Kenya, while the East is made up of Meru, Embu and Tharaka-Nithi counties.
Mr Gachagua revealed how he told President Ruto that it was not possible to divide the Mountain people.
The inquest, they added should investigate the resurgence of state-sponsored criminal gangs, including Mungiki.
