Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua’s latest strategy reveals a man obsessed not with leadership, but with survival. His plan is simple: use others to win, then negotiate his way into power.
Insiders say Gachagua wants to ride on the opposition’s strength — targeting 140 MPs, 25 senators, and 10 governors under his Democracy for Citizens Party (DCP). With those numbers, he intends to become the power broker after the 2027 elections, no matter who wins. If the opposition triumphs, he plans to intimidate Kalonzo Musyoka — who will likely have fewer Wiper MPs — by threatening impeachment unless he gets what he wants.
If, on the other hand, President Ruto is re-elected, Gachagua hopes to strike a “handshake” deal to get a share of government he never helped build. That way, he avoids responsibility but still enjoys power, resources, and relevance — classic political opportunism.
It’s the same game that has defined his career: divide, manipulate, and bargain. By constantly invoking tribal sentiments and claiming that Mt. Kenya “owes” Kalonzo for supporting Mwai Kibaki in 2008, Gachagua is trying to justify a 50 percent claim of government on behalf of one community.
Gachagua’s proposed alliance — with Kalonzo and George Natembeya as the top ticket, and figures like Fred Matiang’i, Eugene Wamalwa, and Martha Karua as Speakers — looks less like a unity team and more like a transactional power syndicate.
This is not leadership; it’s hostage politics. Gachagua’s goal is not to build Kenya but to corner it — to rule without winning, to benefit without building, and to negotiate without responsibility. Kenya deserves better than a man whose only ideology is self-preservation.
