On Sunday night’s Kiririmbi show, former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua once again laid bare a political philosophy that is not only dangerous to Mt. Kenya but also corrosive to our democracy.
He told the region not to reward President Ruto even if he delivers development, effectively saying that service to the people doesn’t matter. This is alarming. Development — roads, markets, hospitals, schools — is the currency of leadership. To dismiss it is to ask millions to suffer needlessly for his own political ambitions.
Gachagua also declared that Mt. Kenya should become a one-party region under his control, branding any other parties or leaders as “briefcases.” This is the very definition of dictatorship. Our strength as a region has always been in our openness, our ability to allow every leader a platform and every voter a choice. Closing that space diminishes us.
Worse still, he openly incited heckling, intimidation, and even violence against leaders who dare to think differently. He encouraged people to reject development projects and to invade private businesses under the guise of politics. These are reckless statements that destabilize livelihoods and endanger peace.
By claiming to “lock” 7 million Mt. Kenya votes for auction to the highest bidder, Gachagua reduces an entire community into a personal bargaining chip. That is not leadership; it is political brokerage at its ugliest.
Mt. Kenya does not need a political landlord. It needs leaders who will champion development, protect democracy, and unite us with the rest of Kenya. Gachagua’s Kiririmbi remarks showed a man obsessed with personal power, even if it means asking his people to pause their lives for two years.
We must reject this selfish politics. Our future is too important to mortgage to one man’s ambitions.
