Nairobi News

Controversial blogger Dennis Itumbi has revealed the fine details of his grand fallout with former President Uhuru Kenyatta.

According to Mr Itumbi, a former journalist, he became friends with the retired Head of State before he embarked on a political journey through the digital space.

“We became friends and I got into politics through the digital space. I became a consultant for his (Mr Kenyatta) campaign. And the rest they say is a good tweet,” Itumbi told Citizen TV.

The self-proclaimed digital strategist says he, however, fell out with President Kenyatta when the retired head of state asked him to stop supporting the then Deputy President William Ruto on social media.

“The fallout with President Kenyatta happened because he wanted me to stop supporting William Ruto. I told him that I would not do that. I believe in this cause and in this journey, and that is what I was going to do,” said Itumbi.

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True to his words, after parting ways with Mr Kenyatta, Itumbi shifted to Dr Ruto’s camp and helped set up an online lobby group known as the Hustler Nation Intelligence Bureau or HNIB.

The blogger also said he chose to go with Dr Ruto after President Kenyatta failed to keep his promise of supporting his then-estranged deputy.

“I was in the room when President Kenyatta promised to support Dr Ruto for the presidency. When he asked me to stop writing about President Ruto and I told him no because it would amount to betrayal,” he said.

And that is how, between 2018 and 2022, Itumbi, who enjoys a huge following on social media, transformed himself from a loyal supporter of President Kenyatta to the fiercest critic who jumped at every opportunity to lambast the then head of state.

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Itumbi also spoke about how tough it was campaigning for President Ruto. The blogger claims he was always trailed by State agents, recalling how he was kidnapped and tortured by people he refers to as rogue police officers.

However, with the campaigns over and President Ruto already into his first three months in office, Itumbi’s formal role at the State House remains unclear.  Even he describes his role as more of a “come here”, or “go there” designation.

“My job is come here, go there. My job description is to ensure that I work with the  president of Kenya for the people of Kenya. I chaired the Jamhuri Day tech committee. We are going to Embu for universal health care….” he says.

He also says he will soon be rolling out a fresh methodology of selling the government’s agenda online, adding that he wants to be remembered when history books are written.

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