‘Cornered’ Gachagua plots Uhuru ‘handshake’
In a dramatic turn of events on the political scene, Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has reached out to former president Uhuru Kenyatta for a political ‘handshake.’
Speaking during an interview with Inooro FM on October 6, 2023, the DP confirmed he will soon initiate talks with the retired president in a bid to ‘foster unity and collaboration within the Mount Kenya region’.
The DP further urged Central Kenya leaders to put aside their differences and respect the former Head of State.
“As Mt Kenya leaders, we have agreed not to be fighting retired president Uhuru Kenyatta. I am planning to hold talks with him. I have ordered everyone to respect him, and he is also doing good to keep his peace,” said the DP.
Kikuyu lawmaker Kimani Ichungwa has, in a recent interview, suggested that he blocked former president Uhuru Kenyatta after a telephone exchange.
Gachagua’s suggestion of a truce with his former boss signifies a significant shift in the political dynamics in the country.
Significantly, it comes a day after President William Ruto effected a Cabinet reshuffle and handed Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi the lucrative Foreign Affairs docket.
The move, according to analysts, suggests Mudavadi is the Head of State’s blue-eyed boy, perhaps at the expense of the DP.
Despite being bosom buddies for the better part of the last three decades, former president Kenyatta and DP Gachagua fell out in the run-up to the 2022 presidential elections in the wake of political differences.
This followed the move by the former president to back Azimio leader Raila Odinga for the presidency while Gachagua successfully rallied behind President William Ruto.
The fallout turned dramatic, as Gachagua, then serving as Mathira MP, was dramatically arrested, handcuffed, driven to Nairobi, and locked up for the weekend before later facing charges for economic crimes.
The charges were later dropped when President Ruto took over and Gachagua has since consistently accused Uhuru of arresting him on trumped-up charges.
Not done, the DP has also accused the former president of corruption and ruining the economy during his reign.
Incidentally, Gachagua in the past served as the former president’s personal assistant in the run-up to the 2002 presidential elections which Uhuru lost to Mwai Kibaki.
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