The decision by President William Ruto to allow parliamentarians impeach Rigathi Gachagua as his deputy a year ago has had a profound impact on the delivery of government services to voters as well as Kenya’s stability.
After taking oath of office in September 2022 as President Ruto’s principal assistant and Kenya’s Deputy President, Rigathi Gachagua embarked on an elaborate plan to accumulate power primitively, and influence, and pulled down all stops to ensure government officials and fellow leaders under the Kenya Kwanza regime felt his weight, and were on their knees ”kissing the ring.”
Driven by blind ambition, Gachagua embarked on creating a new center of power within the Ruto administration, forcing Cabinet Secretaries, Permanent Secretaries and Heads of Parastatals to directly report to him, and using his position as the DP to arm-twist state officials who seemed to go against his orders. This new center of power, sources within government have revealed disjointed the operations of UDA administration, a number of times leading to duplicity of roles and clash between the Deputy President’s office and other state offices.
Among the charges Rigathi Gachagua faced on the floor of the House included violations of the Constitution and related laws, gross misconduct, and abuse of office. His controversial statement on the shareholding in the Kenya Kwanza government, divisive politics and breaching the Secrecy Act and undermining the collective responsibility of the Cabinet.
Gachagua’s direct attack on National Intelligence Service Director General Noordin Haji during the anti-government protests, where youth breached Parliament, exposed him as a lone ranger in Ruto governmet, and MPs feel that his actions compromised Kenya’s security interests, putting millions of citizens at risk.
President Ruto, in an interview earlier this year accused Gachagua of creating “imagined crises”, including demanding Ksh10 billion to resolve Mt. Kenya issues while threatening Ruto’s presidency. Despite repeatedly intervening to save him, Gachagua was impeached in October 2024 for abuse of office and tribalism, with Kithure Kindiki replacing him.
The contrast between Rigathi Gachagua and Kithure Kindiki tenures and Ruto’s Deputy is stark. Today, Kenya is more united with no conversations of shareholding, and the new DP ( Kindiki) insists every Kenyan is entitled to development, whether they voted for Ruto or not. A departure from the shareholding narrative by ousted Gachagua.
Unlike Gachagua’s narrow minded ”Mlima First” push, DP Kndiki has emphasized that no one chooses their tribe and that every Kenyan should feel free to live and do business anywhere in the country.
Speaking during an Economic Empowerment Forum in Kojong’a, Narok East, on October 12th, Kindiki reiterated that all leaders elected across the country are part of one government and that Kenya has one President who serves all citizens equally, regardless of who they voted for.
These efforts, complimented by President Ruto’s urge for a united country and working government for the people have seen an improvement in Kenya Kwanza administration perfomance and the regime’s co-ordination of services to the people.
