How Gachagua's new brand of politics could rattle enemies

Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua’s latest moves have startled critics and sent his political foes back to the drawing board.

It has emerged that Gachagua's new strategy to shed the former antagonistic past and embrace the image of a unifying leader could jolt his political detractors.

Those opposed to the DP had been banking on his controversial utterances rooting for Mount Kenya benefits at the expense of the rest of the country to box him ahead of the 2027 polls.

Gachagua's latest move to project a national image after what allies say was a sterling show during his Nyanza tour has left his critics in a tight spot.

The DP, who accompanied President William Ruto during his Luo Nyanza tour last week was widely cheered by locals despite his previous political utterances that rattled opposition bases.

Gachagua had initially been seen as the face of the Kenya Kwanza figures who vehemently opposed any possibility of President Ruto working with opposition leader Raila Odinga.

Given his perceived antagonistic political manoeuvres against Raila and his admission of traps targeting the former prime minister within State House, it was expected that the ground would be hostile.

Nyanza is Raila’s political heartland whose residents are said to have suffered alleged past political persecution at the hands of successive regimes because of their opposition.

Last week, Gachagua put on a bold and strong political show that for the first time exposed his hidden political cards and strategies to the chagrin of his detractors.

During the four-day tour of the four Luo Nyanza counties, the DP not only made a political U-turn and became Raila’s cheerleader but was also received well by residents.

Some political analysts opine that the tour brought out a different image of Gachagua as he displayed a snippet into his latest new branding and change of tack ahead of the 2027 polls.

Others believe that the DP made a dramatic political comeback that placed him central in the country’s landscape despite initially having been written off by critics.

During the trip, Gachagua spoke highly about Raila in a bid to endear himself to the residents and lauded President Ruto’s decision to form a broad-based government to include ODM figures.

Critics had hoped that Gachagua would give the President’s tour of Luo Nyanza a wide berth in protest of the broad-based Cabinet and given his previous utterances against Raila.

However, when Gachagua stormed Luo Nyanza, his messaging captured him as a man contented in government despite the restructuring of Cabinet.

"President Ruto's move to reconstitute the Cabinet is part of his efforts to bring all Kenyans together for the purpose of achieving shared and inclusive prosperity," he said.

“A united country will maximise its potential in its endeavour for higher socio-economic growth for the good of our people."

Embakasi North MP James Gakuya, one of Gachagua’s key allies, said the DP was erroneous being framed by his detractors to justify the broad-based government and isolate him.

“The deputy president performed beyond expectations and demonstrated to all and sundry that he is a unifying factor who does not play politics of antagonism as some claimed," Gakuya said.

The MP said Kenyans would be surprised that Gachagua’s mission has all along been about unifying the country although his remarks on shares had been taken out of context.

“What Gachagua has been championing was about equity. Equity is not about taking away from others and giving the rest, it is about justice. I am sure the Nyanza trip has shown that the DP is a nationalist," he said.

Gachagua had previously stirred the country’s political landscape with claims that the Mount Kenya region is the biggest shareholder in the Kenya Kwanza government having delivered nearly 47 per cent of the presidential vote.

He had insisted that the rest of the country would be considered for state appointments once all those who voted for the current government secured top positions in President Ruto’s administration.

However, during his tour of Luo Nyanza, Gachagua changed his tune and insisted that all Kenyans have a right to work in government irrespective of how they voted, saying development should be well distributed to benefit the whole country.

Gachagua reflected on past political differences between himself and leaders from the region, saying it is now ‘a thing of the past.’

“Before we did not see eye to eye, I was defending my boss to become President. But now we have united, is there anything wrong with that? We are now one, focused on development,” Gachagua said.

The tour appeared to have informed Gachagua’s next political utterances, with unity of the country central in most of his remarks even as he urged Mount Kenya to borrow a leaf from Luo Nyanza.

When he returned to Mount Kenya turf this week, Gachagua’s messaging was different from his initial rallying mantra, telling the region not to hate any community.

While he called for Mount Kenya unity, Gachagua said the region must rally together like Luo Nyanza and respect its leader.

“We have sat with religious leaders and agree that there will be no time Mt Kenya region will hate anybody or a community because it will be costly for us,” he said.

“We have realised the secret to thriving in the country is to look for friends."

Former Cabinet Minister Franklin Bett said the DP has drastically rebranded to align himself with the emerging political reality by avoiding political actions that could alienate his turf.

“The DP might not have been prepared for the reality but the truth is that his past remarks were viewed as being against other communities and supporting his Mount Kenya region….the trip to Nyanza has changed the picture," he said.

“He is now embodying the national figure of a deputy president."

At the height of the anti-government protests, Gachagua claimed that he had been accused of sponsoring the campaign alongside former president Uhuru Kenyatta.

He even accused the National Intelligence Boss Noordin Haji of being behind the plan to frame him even as he accused his boss of failing to listen to the people over the Finance Bill, 2024.

Some of the president’s allies linked Gachagua to the protests.

The accusations had projected Gachagua as working against his government, triggering reports of an impeachment motion against him.

“It is that background that Gachagua is rebranding while fearing that Ruto has more options in the 2027 reelection strategy than just Mount Kenya," said political analyst Alexander Nyamboga.