Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has strongly urged Mount Kenya voters to prioritise removing the MPs who have supported President William Ruto in the upcoming 2027 elections.
He claimed that these MPs are the primary reason the region continues to face harsh leadership under Ruto’s administration.
Speaking during the 26th anniversary celebrations of St Louis Igwamiti Parish in Ol Joro Orok Constituency, Nyandarua County, on Sunday, April 27, 2025, Gachagua emphasised the need to target these MPs first before even thinking about voting out Ruto.
Gachagua stressed that Mount Kenya voters must hold these MPs accountable for their betrayal of the region, which he insisted is the root cause of the ongoing hardships.
“So even as you keep saying you do not want Ruto, make sure that the first people you vote out in 2027 are those MPs. Elect good people who will take care of you,” he urged.
According to Gachagua, these MPs should hang their heads in shame for making life harder for their own people by backing President Ruto, and he stressed that in order to pave the way to sending Ruto home in 2027, voters must first vote out these MPs.
“All the bad things Ruto is planning for our region have been given weight by all the MPs who are from here but who are supporting him instead of rejecting him. Make sure you kick them out so that you elect good people who will take care of you,” he said.
Mau Mau comparison
The former Mathira MP also drew a comparison between the current political situation and the Mau Mau rebellion, suggesting that the challenges Mount Kenya is facing today are a result of internal betrayal.
He insisted that the Mau Mau war dragged on for so long before Kenyan fighters were able to overthrow the white colonisers because there were traitors among them, adding that the MPs from the region who are supporting Ruto are like those very traitors.
“The problem we have is like the one we had during the Mau Mau era. The Mau Mau war did not drag on because Africans were incapable of fighting; it troubled us because there were people betraying their fellow Mau Mau fighters,” Gachagua explained.
Gachagua further praised the Members of the County Assembly (MCAs) from Nyandarua, applauding them for their steadfast rejection of Ruto’s government.
He praised their courage, contrasting it with the betrayal of the MPs who, in his view, have aligned themselves with Ruto.
“I want to thank the MCAs here because they have shown unwavering rejection of Ruto’s government. They have made the Nyandarua people proud. But the MPs from here betrayed you all; they betrayed the entire region of close to 500,000 people,” Gachagua said.
Reflecting on his tenure as deputy president, Gachagua recalled his success in fighting illicit alcohol in Nyandarua, which had led to the region’s youth abandoning the dangerous substance.
“When I was Deputy President, I fought illegal alcohol with zeal. And we won. We cleared illicit alcohol from here in Nyandarua. Our youths quit the illicit alcohol, and families became more stable because of that,” he recalled.
However, he expressed his concern that under Ruto’s leadership, illicit alcohol is once again being introduced into the region, putting the futures of the youth at risk.
“But now Ruto is bringing back illicit alcohol so that they can finish our youths and kill our generations,” Gachagua lamented.
Own party
Looking ahead to 2027, Gachagua said he was determined to see his political vision come to fruition.
He revealed that he will indeed launch his political party in May, stating that the party will provide the entire Mount Kenya region with a voice of its own, enabling it to challenge other leaders who may try to lure them into joining their parties.
According to him, this is one of the few ways the region can avoid a political catastrophe similar to the one that befell them in 2022, when they entered the elections under the banners of other regions’ political parties.
“In May, we will have our own political party so that we can go to the 2027 polls well-prepared,” he announced, signalling a shift away from traditional political allegiances.