Resign if you believe you have support, Ruto allies dare Gachagua
Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua at Peace and Mercy Church of Africa, Kaplel Artet ward in Kericho County on June 8, 2024.
What you need to know:
- “As the Deputy President, Gachagua should have known better than anyone else that he is a national leader and not a regional kingpin.
- If he feels uncomfortable with the position he is holding, let him resign and go for a local seat in Nyeri,” said Sirisia MP John Waluke.
Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has continued to find himself on the receiving end with allies of President William Ruto slaying him for promoting ethnic politics while holding a national office.
Some of President Ruto’s allies from the Western region now want the country’s second in command to resign and wait for 2027 to contest as a governor in his Nyeri backyard.
This comes amid fireworks in the ruling United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party that has divided allies of Ruto and Gachagua who are trading barbs on their social media platforms and in public gatherings.
Since he declared to unite the Mt Kenya region and fashion himself as the region’s kingpin, championing his one-man, one-vote, one-shilling campaign, Mr Gachagua has found himself in the bad books from many of the UDA members from his Mt Kenya backyard, and other parts of the country.
Some of the agitated UDA members have taken a dig at the DP claiming he grabbed the opportunity to deputise President Ruto from Interior Cabinet Secretary Kindiki Kithure.
Kimilili MP Didmus Barasa on Saturday, asked Mr Gachagua to respect the honour he was accorded by Dr Ruto because he is serving in a position belonging to Mr Kithure.
The MP dared the DP to resign if he felt uncomfortable working under President Ruto, and wait for 2027 to give a stab at the Nyeri governor’s position.
“We shall not accept to be taken back to the route that led Kenya to the 2007 post-election violence by leading our people to regional groupings. We want development to be spread across the 47 counties irrespective of the number of people in those regions.
Some characters who want to take us to where we are coming from must be weeded out with immediate effect,” said Mr Barasa at Namwela village in Sirisia during the burial of Mr Morris Simiyu, father to Mercy Simiyu of the Nation Media Group.
Mr Barasa accused Gachagua of launching early campaigns to succeed President Ruto when they were still serving under one government.
The MP regretted having backed Mr Gachagua as President Ruto’s running mate accusing him of having turned against the government he is serving in his crusade for a One-man, One vote, One-shilling revenue sharing formula.
President Dr William Ruto and Deputy Rigathi Gachagua at the Nakuru Boys High School, for the Akorino National Prayers Conference.
“Mr Gachagua should choose whether he stands by President William Ruto to fulfil the promises they made to Kenyans during campaigns or step down and become the key figure in Mt Kenya politics. It is irrational for Gachagua to be only preoccupied with the wellness of his native region, despite being in the presidency, which is a symbol of national unity,” he added.
Sirisia MP John Waluke who also attended the burial ceremony, challenged Mr Gachagua to commit himself to championing the welfare of the entire country and stop confining himself to his Mt Kenya backyard.
“As the Deputy President, Gachagua should have known better than anyone else that he is a national leader and not a regional kingpin. If he feels uncomfortable with the position he is holding, let him resign and go for a local seat in Nyeri,” said Mr Waluke.
On the One-man, One-Vote, One-Shilling campaign, Mr Barasa argued that Western leads in population and should be given priority if the call by Mr Gachagua is anything to go by.
Barasa asked the people of Western to abstain from using contraceptives so that they continue increasing in numbers to merit more funding from the government.
“I therefore ask Health CS Susan Nakhumicha not to bring those things of family planning to this region. There is no way, the government can be pushing for family planning when money is supposed to be shared according to the big number of people in a region,” he said.
Mr Gachagua who is facing intensified political onslaught from politicians in his Mt Kenya backyard, has remained keen on galvanising support across the region in his endeavour to emerge as the champion of the region’s development agenda.
He has remained defiant of President Ruto’s call on leaders to refrain from promoting tribal politics and maintained that there was a scheme by leaders close to the President to throw him under the bus.
Gachagua and Ruto who have not been attending church functions together for the last month, attended the Akorino National Thanksgiving Prayer Conference in Nakuru on Sunday, June 9.
