Nyandarua Senator John Methu has weighed in after National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah faced a hostile reception in Ol Kalou, where he was mercilessly heckled by an irate crowd in the presence of his boss, President William Ruto.
In a post on his X account on Thursday, March 3, 2025, Methu dismissed the incident with a touch of humour, revealing that they had been handed Ksh2,000 as an incentive not to jeer at the President, while cheekily pointing out that the payment did not extend to other politicians.
According to him, the leaders accompanying President Ruto should not have assumed that the handout dished out by the Head of State would, by some miracle, cover them as well, and the expectation was that if they wanted to be heard, they should have paid their own dues to secure the crowd’s attention.
“We, the people of Nyandarua, were given Ksh2,000 to listen to Mr. @WilliamsRuto; the rest, if they wanted to speak, should have settled their own bill separately.”
Ichung’wah booed
The outspoken anti-Ruto senator was alluding to the dramatic events of Thursday, March 3, 2025, when the Kikuyu MP found himself at the receiving end of the crowd’s fury after President William Ruto extended him the opportunity to address his gathering at the launch of Ol Kalou town’s last mile electricity connectivity.
According to videos that quickly made the rounds online, Ichung’wah had barely opened his mouth before the incensed crowd began waving their hands in fierce opposition to him being given the microphone.
Although he tried to press on, his attempt only fuelled the anger in the air, as the jeers escalated into a full-blown rejection, making it unmistakably clear that he was not welcome there.
The MP appeared stunned that he was being publicly dismissed in such fashion, and in an attempt to salvage the moment, he reassured the audience that all the jobs from the Affordable Housing project, which the President had pledged to roll out in the area, would be allocated to the young people who had turned up for the occasion.
“They have said that all the stonework for the Affordable Housing project should be given to these young men from Affordable Housing,” he said.
However, this did absolutely nothing to douse the flames of hostility, and if anything, the crowd turned up the heat, intensifying their boos and defiantly waving their hands, ensuring that whatever else he had to say was completely drowned out.
At this point, Ichung’wah lost his composure and snapped, warning the crowd that he was not a leader to be heckled at whim, while assertively presenting himself to the Head of State as a man who does not cave in to rejection or intimidation.
“Calm down; I am not someone who gets shouted down, Mr. President; I am not one to be silenced.”
He went on to defiantly declare that he would not be browbeaten into submission, as some had hoped, and he made it clear that none of the leaders accompanying Ruto from Nyandarua would succumb to intimidation either.
“As we have said, here in Ol Kalou and across Nyandarua, no one will be bullied into silence, and I will not be intimidated—God is my witness.”
Even with that, the crowd remained unrelenting, their jeers growing even louder, and Ichung’wah was ultimately forced to cut his speech short, sarcastically remarking that he was blessing them and thanking them for the hostility they had so generously shown him.
“May God bless you; thank you very much.”
His reaction appeared to take President William Ruto by surprise, as he had been silently observing the drama unfold, and after Kimani retreated, the president stepped in to pacify the restless crowd, assuring them that their grievances had been heard loud and clear.
“Alright, alright, I have got the message; I understand—now let me invite the next leader.”