Former Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang'i.
Former Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang'i’s 2027 presidential ambitions continue to gain traction, with allies of Uhuru Kenyatta saying the former president plans to back him to dethrone President William Ruto.
A leading figure in Mr Kenyatta’s Jubilee Party on Sunday told the Nation that “as things stand, Matiang’i is the Jubilee Party candidate for presidency in 2027.”
The source said the former Head of State was also seeking to reach out to former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, whose allies were recently co-opted into Dr Ruto’s broad-based government, to join Dr Matiang’i’s camp before 2027.
“It is coordinated. Uhuru is trying to put together the opposition to support Matiang’i. He is the one behind all these plans,” the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity citing the sensitivity of plans, added.
When asked whether Mr Kenyatta had settled on Dr Matiang’i for 2027, Jubilee Secretary-General Jeremiah Kioni on Sunday said; “I don’t want to delve into the matter but we have a full team we are consulting, including Matiang’i.”
“We are working with Matiang’i, Kalonzo (Musyoka), (Eugene) Wamalwa, (George) Natembeya, (Okiya) Omtatah… basically with all those leaders who think that change is necessary,” Mr Kioni told the Nation.
“What I can confirm to you is that coalition building is on, and the desire to work together is there— with everybody, every Kenyan who thinks change is necessary but the role each of us will play will be determined by Kenyans themselves.”
Jubilee National Chairman Torome Saitoti said the party would enter into a coalition against Dr Ruto in the run-up to the 2027 polls.
“The 2027 election is still two years away, and there will be a coalition against Ruto and Jubilee Party might also join in. We are committed to ensuring that we give meaningful direction to the people of Kenya,” Mr Saitoti, a former Planning principal secretary, said.
In the lead-up to 2022 elections, Mr Odinga revealed that he was willing to support Dr Matiang’i for the country’s top seat.
Mutual agreement
Speaking during a funds drive in support of Mwongori High School in Borabu Constituency, Nyamira County, in October 2021, Mr Odinga said the plan was vacated after assessing the ground and entered a mutual agreement to have the CS support him instead.
“One time I said I was ready to support Matiang’i but later on when we did a review and looked at how the forest was looking like, he told me that you should go to the forest first,” Mr Odinga said then.
Dr Matiang’i has in recent days embarked on extensive consultations with political players across the board, and his first assignment is to rally his Gusii community behind him before setting out to woo other regions.
On Tuesday last week, Dr Matiang’i held a consultative meeting with a section of Gusii lawmakers in Karen, Nairobi, where the issue of his candidacy was discussed.
He has also held meetings with various political strategists and communication experts to brainstorm on his candidacy.
At least nine legislators from the Gusii region attended the Karen meeting. Kisii Senator Richard Onyonka (ODM), who confirmed attending the city meeting, said the main agenda was “Dr Matiang’i’s 2027 presidential run.”
“Dr Matiang’i is running for president, and the meeting we held last week was just about strategy. He was on a fact-finding mission, gave us information and data in terms of his preparedness, and basically on the strategy that he is supposed to use and when to start the campaigns,” Mr Onyonka told the Nation.
A source familiar with the meeting confided in the Nation that Mr Kenyatta had assured Dr Matiang’i of his support, and advised him to begin by consolidating his base.
According to data from the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), Kisii and Nyamira counties had a total of 960,293 registered voters ahead of the 2022 elections.
Kisii had 637,323 voters while Nyamira had 323,283, even though the community also has a sizeable number of voters in cosmopolitan towns, including Nakuru and Nairobi cities.
Efforts to reach Dr Matiang'i for comments were futile. A former MP from Nyamira County told the Nation that the former CS planned to leave the country for the US a few days ago.
"I think he already left the country for the US like three or four days ago," the ex-legislator told the Nation.
Mr Kenyatta's recent support of Gen Zs as they push the Ruto administration to respect human rights— including stopping arbitrary arrests, abductions and enforced disappearances— appeared to complicate the relationship between the president and his former boss, who backed Mr Odinga in the 2022 polls.
Fight for rights
"You should not be cowed. You know, I don't know whether you have been cowed... no, that's not the way to live. Fight for your rights," Mr Kenyatta said in Gatundu.
Dr Matiang’I’s interest in the presidency could excite a section of the young generation who used their social media platforms to express their support for him during the anti-government protests last year.
Mr Kenyatta spoke on the same day President Ruto swore in two Cabinet secretaries allied to Mr Kenyatta– Mutahi Kagwe (Agriculture) and Lee Kinyanjui (Trade). The two were appointed following a surprise meeting between the two leaders in Gatundu, Kiambu County, on December 9, 2024.
Jubilee leaders said Mr Kenyatta, who had initially leaned towards Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka, is not comfortable with the Wiper leader’s camaraderie with former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua.
Mr Musyoka unsuccessfully mobilised his troops to oppose Mr Gachagua’s ouster motion last year, and his allies, including Makueni senator Dan Maanzo, have indicated that the two leaders will forge a 2027 alliance.
"Wiper will form an alliance with Rigathi Gachagua. We will form a big alliance which will form 50+1 [in] round one," Mr Maanzo said.
There are reports that the Gusii community, which largely voted for Mr Odinga and his allies in the last election, will be whipped to join Dr Matiang’i’s camp, as the community plans to launch a party that it will use for negotiations ahead of 2027 elections.
Kitutu Chache South MP Anthony Kibagendi (ODM) recently launched a scathing attack on Mr Odinga’s ODM party, accusing it of treating the Gusii community “as second-class partners in the party.”
“We have genuinely been very patient and respectful. Despite extended periods of discrimination, no one from Gusii is a chairman or vice chairman of any committee in Parliament,” Mr Kibagendi said.
He also waded into the appointment of ODM National Treasurer Timothy Bosire as non-executive chairperson of a board by President Ruto, arguing that the former Kitutu Masaba MP was shortchanged.
“After a long wait for Hon. Timothy Bosire to get a nomination to CS position or a more powerful government position, guess what? He was, without consultation, appointed to be a non-executive Chairman of NTSA, really? Is this what Timothy deserves for his long-standing loyalty?”
Mr Bosire declined the post.
Political interest
Mr Onyonka said the Gusii community was ready to galvanise its support behind Dr Matiang’i’ or former Chief Justice David Maraga should he also express political interest.
“We shall discuss details of the best political vehicle in terms of party because now we are still looking at all options on the table. Whether United Progressive Alliance (UPA), then negotiate with other bigger parties; whether we are going to negotiate with Azimio and all like-minded people who are willing to be part of our journey… but the truth is the Kisii community has decided to set up its own political party and come with its own candidate”.
The United Progressive Alliance (UPA), a political party associated with Dr Matiang’I, has since embarked on rebranding to accord itself a national outlook.
The party has been racing against time to shed off the ‘one tribe party’ tag that it has lately been associated with.
Speaking after a National Governing Council (NGC) meeting in Nyamira recently, UPA leader Amos Nyaribo explained that the NGC had resolved to surrender some party positions to individuals from other parts of the country as part of its expansion strategy, signalling Dr Matiang’i’s ambitions for a national post.
Dr Matiang’i’s latest strategic moves have come barely a few months after he recruited a globally recognised firm to lobby for his prospects as the sixth President of Kenya.
The Canadian-based Dickens and Madson would be paid Sh32.5 million to lobby the executive and/or legislative branches of the governments of powerful nations— including the US, UK and Japan— and any other mutually agreed upon country or countries, and international organisations on Mr Matiang’i’s behalf.
“The firm will also provide other services to assist in devising and executing policies for the beneficial development and stability of your political goals and to assist you in attaining the Office of the President of the Republic of Kenya,” said part of an agreement signed on July 13, 2024, that was seen by The Africa Report.
Dr Matiang’i, who has kept a low profile since his exit from office in 2022, is hoping to ride on his performance when he served in the ministries of ICT, Education and Interior to occupy State House.
jjochieng @ke.nationmedia.com
