Impeached former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has turned his dwindling political capital into a blunt weapon: smear anyone who dares to defy him. Yesterday, Gachagua branded Kiharu MP Ndindi Nyoro “President Ruto’s project,” the latest in a string of baseless attacks designed to force Kikuyu leaders into submission.
This has become his tired script: if you don’t worship him, you’re instantly a traitor. When Nyoro opted for silence instead of indulging in Gachagua’s tribal politics, he too was painted as a puppet. The pattern is familiar. In 2022, Gachagua vilified then-President Uhuru Kenyatta with venomous barbs — only to come crawling back with an apology after impeachment, one Uhuru pointedly ignored. Now, the same bitterness is aimed at a younger generation of leaders.
MPs who voted for his impeachment have been declared “betrayers” in their own constituencies, with Gachagua urging voters to punish them. This reckless attempt to gatekeep Mt Kenya politics exposes his insecurity more than it consolidates his authority. By labeling every independent voice as a “Ruto project,” Gachagua confirms what many voters already suspect: his politics is about control, not service.
The contrast could not be sharper. While President Ruto courts leaders with development pledges — from irrigation schemes in Murang’a to housing units across Mt Kenya — Gachagua sits in Wamunyoro, demanding loyalty and branding dissenters as sellouts.
The region is growing weary. Mt Kenya’s voters want roads, jobs, and markets — not another cycle of bitterness. Gachagua’s politics of intimidation might silence some leaders temporarily, but in the long run it only isolates him. His weapon of choice — fear — is fast losing its edge.
