Nairobi News

Political operative Bill Arocho made a name for himself for his informal relationship and closeness to high profile politicians in the country, including retired president Uhuru Kenyatta.

For more than 10 years, Mr Arocho worked as a private bouncer to politicians in the country before he called it quits in December last year, citing demanding nature of offering VVIP security.

On that occasion, he promised to inform Nairobi News his next move.

Then came the news on Tuesday that Mr Arocho had decamped from Mr Kenyatta’s Jubilee Party and joined President William Ruto’s United Democratic Alliance (UDA).

Also read: Uhuru’s long-term ‘bouncer’ Bill Arocho defects from Jubilee Party to Ruto’s UDA

Mr Arocho made the announcement of his defection during a press conference that was attended by UDA Secretary General Cleophas Malala.

Mr Arocho has now come out to state that he remains good friends with Mr Kenyatta, his defection notwithstanding. Speaking exclusively to Nairobi News on Wednesday, Arocho also credited the retired Head of State for his fortunes.

“Uhuru has influenced my life and I thank him for that. For a very long time, he has changed my life. He made me move from the left side of Uhuru Highway and I currently live on the right side of the Highway. I thank him and I’m very grateful to him but you know, life has to move on. We’re still friends, we are buddies, we are pretty close friends but now politically, I’ve moved to UDA,” he said.

Arocho also said he informed Mr Kenyatta of his planned move and the retired president had no issues.

Also read: Court blocks Kenyan government from revoking Uhuru’s son’s firearm license

“I respect him being a Jubilee leader, I respect him for the years we’ve worked together and we had a very lengthy talk in regards to my latest move to UDA. I told him that ‘I think now I’m going to follow my friends’ and he was like ‘okay’. In fact, he had no issues. He has no problem. He’s a democrat. He said ‘Billy, you are young enough, you go on with life,” Mr Arocho told Nairobi News.

Jubilee is the party on whose ticket Mr Kenyatta twice ran for and won the presidential elections in 2013 and 2017, with Dr Ruto as his deputy.

In the run up to those two General Elections, Mr Arocho openly backed Mr Kenyatta before shifting his support to Mr Raila Odinga during last year’s polls after President Kenyatta had a bitter fallout with Dr Ruto.

President Ruto went on to win the election after which Mr Arocho began pledging loyalty to the new President once he was declared the winner of the presidential race.

However, Arocho maintains that he and President Ruto have been friends since the latter’s days as Deputy President and the deputy leader of Jubilee Party. He said that is why it was easy for him to shift allegiance to the Kenya Kwanza government.

Also read: I was not drunk, Uhuru says about his angry outburst at his son’s home