Ruto, Gachagua fallout looms if current war persists - Senator Onyonka

Onyonka said that if by next year this war continues, both leaders will be gone.

In Summary
  • If the political disagreement continues into next year  between President William Ruto and his deputy Rigathi Gachagua  there will be a permanent split between the two.
  • Onyonka said that the ongoing wrangles between the two men at the nation's helm continue a historical pattern
President William Ruto shakes hannds with his deputy Rigathi Gachagua on Sunday, May 19, 2024 before starting his journey to United States of America for a State Visit.
President William Ruto shakes hannds with his deputy Rigathi Gachagua on Sunday, May 19, 2024 before starting his journey to United States of America for a State Visit.
Image: DPPS

Kisii Senator Richard Onyonka has said that President William Ruto might pick a different person to be his running mate come 2027 if the ongoing squabbles in the government persist beyond next year.

Onyonka said that the ongoing wrangles in Kenya's Kwanza government continue, a historical pattern that has always seen the relationship between a president and deputy president turn sour will reoccur.

This, according to Onyonka, will see both Gachagua and Ruto part ways ahead of the 2027 polls.

"By next year if this war continues like this, Gachagua will be gone and William Ruto will be gone," Onyonka said during an interview with Citizen TV Monday.

"The question then becomes does Gachagua or Ruto move to the west (Western Kenya) to go and pick a vice president and also what happens to that vice president after Ruto wins his second term. Will he also be betrayed?"

The remarks by Onyonka come in the wake of rumoured infighting in the Kenya Kwanza government.

Gachagua on Sunday however allayed the fears saying they are in good terms with the president.

"Tupendane tuungane tuishi kwa amani, sisi sote ni wa Kenya na tukifanya namna hio tutaishi vizuri. Hio ndio Rais ametuongoza. Mimi na Rais tunafanya kazi nzuri, tunapendana tunapanga kazi yetu. Amenipatia kazi mingi hata ingine inanishinda, ameniwezesha kuendelea na kazi yangu kwa hivyo serikali yetu iko imara tunaendelea na kazi," Gachagua said.

(Let us love each other, unite and live in peace, we are all Kenyans and if we are like that, we shall live happily. That is what our President has taught us. President Ruto and I are doing a great job, we love each other and we are planning our work accordingly. He has given me a lot of work to deliver and some even become overwhelming, but he has enabled me to work effectively. The government is solid and we are progressing well.)

He spoke during an interdenominational church service in Kesses.

WATCH: The latest videos from the Star