The bravado by allies of Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has died down in a week after the dramatic impeachment of the country’s second in command.
Most of the DP’s allies who had
vowed “consequences” for any attempted removal of their man have
gone quiet as Gachagua fights what
appears to be a lonely court battle.
Some analysts are questioning whether Gachagua could mount any consequential political duel against his estranged boss, President William Ruto, if the courts uphold his removal from office.
This would be made worse because he also stands barred from permanently holding public office. He denies abuse of office, undermining the President, divisive tribalism and corruption.
The Senate upheld impeachment charges while Gachagua was hospitalised for intense chest pains and he was denied a chance to answer charges.
Nyeri Governor Kahiga Mutahi is among the notable figures in the DP’s camp who had dared Ruto to go for Gachagua. However, since the DP's removal, the usually outspoken governor is yet to make any statement.
Embakasi MP Benjamin Gathiru, popularly known as Mejjadonk, however, dismissed claims Gachagua’s brigade has strategically gone silent.
He said they are waiting for the court verdict —on impeachment and swearing in a new DP —and warned the silence of the Mt Kenya people should not be mistaken for cowardice or inaction.
“Most Mt Kenya voters are quiet because that is their nature when they are fed up. ey only make noise when there is room for change,” the MP told the Star. “They are waiting for the appropriate time to act— that is during voting.”
Gathiru said while critics are questioning their current silence and apparent inaction, Mt Kenya MPs who voted against Gachagua cannot visit their constituencies for fear of physical backlash and reprisal for opposing their man from Nyeri.
He likened Gachagua’s removal to the Jubilee era when President Uhuru Kenyatta and his men unleashed state machinery against Ruto who overcame them to become President, with Gachgua’s help in winning over Mt Kenya voters.
“Gachagua too will overcome and emerge victorious,” he told the Star, adding that the people are with them.
Forty-four MPs voted to save Gachagua in the National Assembly. 282 others voted for his removal. In the Senate 54 senators out of 67 voted to uphold charges against him, thus impeaching Gachagua.
Apart from nominating Interior CS Kindiki Kithure to replace Gachagua, Ruto’s team has employed a multi-pronged strategy to discredit the DP who styled himself king of Mt Kenya and treasurer of its votes.
There are indications Gachagua’s allies holding parliamentary leadership positions are set to be kicked out. Gachagua, too, could face criminal prosecution over graft claims.
Are they saving their own skins by disassociating themselves from him? Last week, the DCI invited Gachagua to record a statement after he alleged two attempts by state operatives to poison him. He did not appear for the questioning.
Apart from Governor Kahiga, Embakasi North MP James Gakuya and a host of senators who initially backed the DP are also missing in action.
Very little, if nothing, is heard of the politicos who recently defected to the Gachagua camp as the onslaught against the DP gathered steam.
They include Gatanga MP Edward Muriu, Starehe MP Amos Mwago, Maragua’s Mary Wamaua, Nyeri Woman MP Rahab Mukami, her Embu counterpart Pamela Njoki and Tetu MP Geoffrey Wandeto.
Others are Juja’s George Koimburi, Kandara MP Njuguna Chege. Kangema’s Peter Kihungi, Munyoro Joseph of Kigumo, and Wanjiku Muhia of Kipipiri.
However, Kiambu Senator Karungo Thang’wa and Githunguri MP Gathoni Wamuchomba have not gone to ground but have sustained their tirades against Ruto.
On Saturday, Wamuchomba issued a statement, saying that under Ruto, “the soul of the country is systematically being destroyed” and Kenya is “teetering to authoritarianism”.
“In my community, the traitors, collaborators, home guards and informers who betrayed people were ostracised and hanged. Worse still, their generation were cursed,” she said in an apparent reference to Mt Kenya MPs who voted against Gachagua.
Political commentator Anderson Ojwang said many alignments and realignments would happen as the clock ticks to the 2027 polls.
“Politics is a matter of interest. There are no permanent interests. Some of the DP’s allies were either close to receiving benefi ts that accrue to them directly,” he said.
“With the changing dynamics, some are likely to run and align with Ruto [for the sake of their own benefits], while some who were not the DP’s allies would side with him to be elected by a furious Mt Kenya electorate,” Ojwang said.
Ojwang said MPs who stand with Gachagua could reap big politically. He said Gachagua’s predicament has made him a hero in the eyes of the Mt Kenya people.
“He is the new Raila (Odinga) of Mt Kenya. He is the de facto leader. His suffering has made Mt Kenya people align with him. He has come out as brave and has made the community identify with him as their ‘njamba’ [hero, warrior],” the analyst said.
The big question is whether the remnants of the Gachagua camp can mount and sustain a political war as their numbers are considered nonthreatening.
Political analyst Javas Bigambo says fighting for Gachagua at this time wouldn’t be a walk in the park, and that some would fall by the wayside.
He says this is especially true after debunking “the absurdly fictional assumption” that they were politically indispensable.
“Gachagua has to reinvent himself, and so must his allies. The dynamics of the next two years will be consequential for both sides. Some will drown and never recover,” Bigambo said.
“If Gachagua is vanquished, his close allies will suffer his fate. Without political power, he may end up like Kalonzo Musyoka, having a name known in politics but without any influence or consequence in national election outcomes,” he added.
“Gachagua dug his grave, now he has to bury himself,” Bigambo said. The DP’s allies, those not in hiding out of self-interest or supposed strategy, disagree.