NAIROBI, Kenya, Jan 24 – President William Ruto has criticized his former Deputy President, following Rigathi Gachagua’s recent interractive session on social media in which he accused the Kenya Kwanza administration of failing to deliver on its promises.
Speaking in Busia County on Friday, President Ruto underscored the importance of national unity and condemned leaders who promote tribalism, hatred, and division.
He specifically called out Gachagua, accusing him of incompetence and a lack of direction during his tenure.
“There are people who are cons, who had big jobs and were unable to do them because of incompetence, tribalism, corruption, hatred, and lack of direction. Now they are giving us lectures,” he said.
“Who are they lecturing?” Ruto retorted.
The President further emphasized that leaders driven by selfish motives, corruption, and tribal politics have no place in Kenya.
“Leaders who don’t believe in the oneness of the country, who are driven by tribalism, corruption, hatred, and division, have no space here. We will not allow them to divide the country along tribal lines because they have nothing to offer,” Ruto stated.
The President made the remarks in response to Gachagua’s live address earlier in the week, when he criticized Ruto claimed that residents of the Mount Kenya region had lost faith in his leadership.
Gachagua alleged that Ruto’s promises to the region had gone unfulfilled and warned the people of western Kenya to avoid falling into a “trap”.
“I want to tell the people of Western to be careful. We have seen that script before. What is happening in Western is what happened to Mount Kenya,” he argued.
“He came here every Sunday, visited every village, knew all the roads by name, but he disappeared when people realized he lied, cheated, and conned us,” Gachagua said referring to campaigns preceding the 2022 presidential election.
The former DP, whom Ruto allied impeached in October 2024, said Ruto’s efforts to regain support in Mount Kenya would fail, regardless of measures he takes.
“Even if he resurrected Kenyatta, Kibaki, and Moi, or even Gikuyu and Mumbi and appointed their nine daughters as Cabinet Secretaries, it wouldn’t change anything. People here have moved on,” Gachagua stated, invoking Kenya’s first three presidents and Gikuyu and Mumbi, an ancient folklore couple from whom the Kikuyu trace their origin.
Gachagua’s recent remarks point to an escalation following his fallout with Ruto and his subsequent replacement with Kithure Kindiki, who Ruto bypassed despite winning a pre-election Electoral College to deputize him.
Ruto has adopted an increasingly aggressive posture against Gachagua as he intensifies effort to solidify his support amid mounting pressure on government following Gen Z-led anti-tax protests in June 2024 which Gachagua endorsed.
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