Gachagua has publicly criticised Ruto on various issues, raising questions about the sustainability of his onslaught. I seek to explore why DP Gachagua’s onslaught on President Ruto is likely to fall flat.
DP Gachagua and President Ruto have a long-standing political alliance in the Kenya Kwanza government. The two campaigned on a platform of the Bottom Up Transformative Agenda (BETA) that triggered a titanic assault by President Uhuru Kenyatta and former Prime Minister Raila Odinga.
Their attack bore results by bonding who in 2018 March had joined hands to work together, isolating then DP Ruto, through the much-publicised handshake.
Gachagua was critical in the onslaught in Mt Kenya, especially the Kikuyu populace, portraying Uhuru as a “spoilt kid of privilege” who did not understand his own people’s welfare and therefore pushed an agenda of the rich to the detriment of the poor, the hustlers.
The Ruto-Gachagua duo also worked on a campaign strategy terming the handshake brothers dynasties against the policies that championed the welfare of the largest populace of Kenya, the hustlers. Gachagua was bare knuckled whenever he got a public platform to hit out against his former boss Uhuru. He and first-term young members of Parliament sustained an onslaught that saw Uhuru’s Jubilee under the banner of the Azimio coalition dealt a fatal blow, losing the majority of seats in the Central region.
All the three governors: Muranga, the former president’s county of Kiambu, and Kirinyaga were elected on the UDA ticket. Further in Embu, Tharaka and Meru, Uhuru was defeated hands down, courtesy of the UDA and Kenya Kwanza euphoric wave. The whole of Mt Kenya region went the Ruto-Gachagua way. The champion of the dynasty-versus-the hustlers’ clarion call was the DP, son of the Mau Mau, as he proudly refers to himself.
He rose to power and from the onset, at President Ruto’s inauguration ceremony, when he did not have kind words for the former President who was present to hand over to his former deputy at the Kasarani Sports Complex. The DP continued to hit out at the opposition once in a while, slamming them and the “deep state” and how they failed to win elections.
He did not know that politics, and especially fluid Kenyan politics, is the art of the possible. He once declared himself “The State House watchman” who held the key and determined who entered to see the President and ensured the Azimio brigade did not access the House on the Hill.
When Odinga announced a truce with the Kenya Kwanza regime, calling off the opposition’s cost of living protests against the government, things started going against Gachagua. He had never imagined a day when President Ruto could reach a truce with Opposition leader Odinga. Things were later compounded when Odinga announced his quest to succeed African Union Commission chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat. The announcement immediately received government backing as Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi announced the Kenyan government was lobbying support for the Odinga bid. Gachagua seemed not to see that coming.
He continued his barrage against the opposition, declaring the government a shareholding entity from which only Kenya Kwanza supporters would benefit. He did not seem to learn from his boss that because of the country’s challenging economic turmoil, he was looking elsewhere to get an opportunity to govern and turn around the economy without opposition intrusion.
This has led to public spats and mobilisation of the ethnic Mt Kenya to remain relevant. It has led to an internal power struggle within UDA, which does not sit well with the party’s rank and file. Moreover, UDA’s electoral fortunes heavily depended on maintaining the unity and cohesion of its leaders to present a united front against opposition parties.
With the prevailing hard economic times Gachagua finds himself in a Catch 22 situation. Kenyans are looking forward to economic stability and service rather than engaging in public feuds. It is unlikely that Kenyans will support or condone a prolonged onslaught by DP Gachagua against President Ruto if it does not yield tangible benefits for the country or its people. Instead, they are more likely to demand that both leaders focus their energies on addressing pressing issues, such as poverty alleviation, job creation, and infrastructure development.
The DP’s call for the unification of the Mountain, including his peace overture to Uhuru, may not yield fruit because of the strained relationship that he created and shepherded. The DP had claimed that the former President was behind the financing of the opposition protests a claim that the former first family has vehemently denied.
With that background, will Uhuru forgive him? What political value can he add to him? Wouldn’t Uhuru rather deal directly with the President and not through his employee-turned-political nemesis? With Odinga’s eyes on the AUC position, the calls for unification of Mt Kenya may not succeed under Gachagua as he still is opposed by many leaders from the region, including the Cabinet Secretary Moses Kuria, Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru and a host of others who dine with the President.
The realisation by Gachagua that his goose is cooked may have come too late in the day. His declaration on the roadside terming Uhuru their “son”, and calling him to the table to unite Mt Kenya, may also be detrimental and not strategic. A man of the stature of the former president - for whom Gachagua has never had a kind word - is unlikely to make up and join his political journey.
This could lead to Gachagua’s losing more credibility and legitimacy as his agenda is perceived as petty or unfounded. The way things look today, there could be emergency political alliances in the country’s dynamic political landscape.
Gachagua cannot sustain any onslaught against President Ruto. His onslaught is likely to fall flat. Bwana DP, it’s advisable to focus your energy on addressing pressing issues facing Kenyans, rather than engaging in a prolonged public spat that could harm your political future.
Journalist and strategic communications practitioner
