Before he was catapulted into the lofty position of deputy president, Rigathi Gachagua’s highest political experience was being a one-term MP for Mathira. His was one of the tinniest CVs for anyone who had risen to the second highest office in the land.
Even his election as Mathira MP was somewhat fortuitous for Rigathi. The demise of his elder brother Nderitu Gachagua, who was the first Nyeri governor, opened a window for the former district commissioner to wade into the murky world of politics.
Before he passed on in 2017, Nderitu had served Mathira diligently, first as MP before he was elected Nyeri governor, making him one of the influential political figures in Mt Kenya region. In his honour and out of sympathy, the electorate bequeathed the Mathira leadership mantle to Rigathi.
As legislator, Rigathi’s performance was largely uneventful. No highlights jump to mind on his stint in Parliament. It is not easy to put a finger on any legislative accomplishments under his belt.
He was neither an avid debater, choosing to been seen rather than heard in the august chambers. Even outside Parliament, Rigathi was an unknown entity, barely ruffling any feathers.
Riggy G’s transformation
Rigathi’s decorous demeanour would however undergo a sea change when William Ruto assembled a team to help him in his race for State House. As an integral part of the campaign brigade, he instantly transformed beyond recognition.
He swiftly shed his calm mien and turned into an abrasive, sharp-tongued and gung-ho character. Bold and always in a combative mode, Rigathi was never afraid to go head to head with his political opponents, however mighty they were.
When Rigathi directly trained his political guns on former President Uhuru Kenyatta, Kenyans took notice of his newfound valorous stance.
He was now playing in the premier league of high-stake political games. For being intrepid enough to take on Uhuru and the entire edifice of government – the so-called system or deep state – he endeared himself to many not least the electorate who felt Uhuru’s administration had fallen far short in delivering on a host of its development promises.
Nomination as Ruto’s running mate
The most defining moment in Rigathi’s political career was his nomination as William Ruto’s running mate ahead of the 2022 general election. This coveted prize did not come naturally to him though.
In a UDA democratic process, where MPs, senators and other top leaders voted, Rigathi was literally whitewashed by Kithure Kindiki.
The results shook the former Mathira MP to the core. If the outcome of this poll had been allowed to stand, he would never have been DP and your guess is as good as mine the direction his political fate would have taken.
Perhaps out of sympathy for the sacrifices Rigathi had made in the campaigns, Dr Ruto defied the polls and chose him as his running mate, a move UDA leaders accepted reluctantly.
The decision to settle on him despite suffering such an embarrassingly heavy loss to Prof. Kindiki was also partly informed by the fact that he comes from the populous part of Mt Kenya region that has for decades largely determined who wins the presidential contest. Rigathi’s choice was, therefore, essentially informed by pragmatism.
And Dr. Ruto was vindicated as he went on to bag majority of the votes in the Mt Kenya region on his way to his decisive presidential victory.
Although Riggy G was elated that Ruto had ultimately picked him to be his running mate, the lingering question at the back of his mind was why most leaders, particularly from Mt Kenya, had not voted for him in the gruelling battle with Prof. Kindiki.
Even after the general election with Rigathi comfortably ensconced in his posh offices in Nairobi’s Harambee Avenue and Karen, this unsettling sense of unease and vulnerability simply refused to fade.
Fight for the Mountain
To assuage his unnerving feeling of insecurity, Rigathi went after Mt Kenya leaders with gusto, demanding their total allegiance in a game plan bereft of any coherent strategy. His modus operandi was characterised by a blend of direct threats, expletives and blackmail.
The blowback from his belligerent and toxic brand of politics was almost immediate. A number of leaders from the region refused to be cowed and started to flatly disobey him.
Apparently, Riggy G’s unparalleled ego led him into thinking his word would be law in Mt Kenya region. Sooner rather than later he learned, much to his chagrin, that this was far from being the case.
Granted, there was a chance for him to inch closer to being the kingpin of the region if he had chosen to be smart, dignified, statesman, astute and strategic.
But it seems these grand words never exist in his political vocabulary and lexicon. Thus, he recklessly squandered this rare golden chance by allowing too much power to seep into his head and choosing to walk the path of arrogance, malice, hubris and dictatorship.
Although a section of wananchi began to pivot towards him upon his ascension to DP position, Riggy G was alive to the fact he had not fully earned unequivocal support of the entire region. Clearly, he needed to do a lot more to persuade Mt Kenya voters to accord him undivided backing in his quest to be the region’s spokesperson.
The starting point for him would have been to demonstrate vision, inspiration, foresight and wisdom in his leadership. Rigathi has, however, failed massively on this score, significantly undermining his own mission to climb to the acme of Mt Kenya politics. Where his leadership ought to shine, his demagoguery and incendiary remarks have been in full display.
Beyond Rigath’s leadership debacle, there is yet another major stumbling block to his boundless ambition. Winning solid support in a region where the Kenyatta family is still calling the shots, having had its say and way politically since independence, would be a tall order even for a politically adept leader.
In the campaigns ahead of the 2022 polls, Riggy G, as the former DP is popular known, was deluded into imagining he was more than capable of easily toppling Uhuru Kenyatta from the perch of Mt Kenya politics.
The mammoth crowds Dr. Ruto’s juggernaut commanded in the Mt Kenya campaign trails convinced Rigathi that he finally had all the ammunition to bring down the region’s political colossus in the name of Uhuru and his family.
Such was the enormity of Riggy G’s confidence that he jettisoned any semblance of civility and decorum and hurled all manner of insults against the former president.
Along the way as DP, it dawned on the former Mathira MP that it was nigh impossible to completely supplant Uhuru as Mt Kenya spokesman.
This realisation drove him to start sending an olive branch to the former president. While he painted Uhuru with repulsive doomsday colours during the campaigns, suddenly he now speaks of him in glowing terms.
In so short a time, Uhuru has miraculously transformed in Riggy G’s eyes from a devil lurking in the shadows with dark intentions, to an angel resplendent in robes as white as snow.
Impeachment
While his elevation to the second most powerful office in the country marked a seismic turning point in his political career, Rigathi’s impeachment hit him like a hurricane with devastating consequences. His fall was as dramatic and swift as his rise. In just two years, his spellbinding tale can be encapsulated thus: He rose from grass to grace and back to grass.
Riggy G’s Waterloo came at a worst time, when he was still trying to consolidate his base in his endavour to be the Alpha and Omega of Mt Kenya politics. In a blink of an eye, all that he had been dreaming of and painstakingly building exploded into pieces like a house of cards.
Despite earning some measure of sympathy from a section of Mt Kenya people and leaders in the wake of his ignominious impeachment, his all-consuming ambition to be the region’s undisputed spokesperson remains as arduous a task as ever. And this dream will remain elusive as long as the people he insulted and savagely disparaged when he was in government have not forgiven him.
It is common knowledge the extent to which Riggy G can go in unleashing his offensive verbal artillery against his rivals. It will certainly take time for Uhuru and his family to forget some of the extremely demeaning and derogatory sentiments Rigathi deployed against them at every opportunity during campaigns and when he was in government. Who can easily forget such ferocious and sharp insults that cut deep into the soul?
Aside from the imperative of building bridges with his erstwhile bitter political rivals, there are many other numerous hurdles Rigathi must conquer in his quest to be a formidable political player in Mt Kenya and across the country. And the most consequential hurdle is himself. Indisputably, he is his own worst enemy in his effort to laboriously pick up the pieces and rebuild what remains of his hopelessly shattered political career.
Incorrigible lies
To start with, he has to stop forthwith being such an incorrigibly barefaced liar. He keeps accusing President Ruto of being dishonest, but since his was kicked out of office, Riggy G has easily become one of the most hypocritical and perfidious politicians under the planet. His speeches as DP and the pronouncements he has been making since his impeachment are just a classic lesson in contradiction and chicanery. Without batting an eyelid, he is currently voicing the exact opposite of his remarks as DP.
For instance, as DP he vehemently defended the affordable housing programme saying it is meant to dignify Kenyans in slums by giving them an opportunity to reside in decent homes. After being impeached, he is now vigorously condemning the same programme. As DP, he gleefully cited economic progress the Kenya Kwanza administration had achieved, leading to easing of the cost of living. After being kicked out, he has flagrantly turned his back on the glaring economic facts and figures he was loudly shouting about from the rooftops.
When in government, he never missed an opportunity to boldly announce that when the KK administration assumed office, the Treasury coffers were practically empty, and even “rats had disowned the store” because there was not even a morsel to eat. After he was sent packing, he brazenly changed tune, saying there were some resources enough to keep the country going.
The speed with which Riggy G changes tune on grave national matters is head-spinning. This startling pattern of behaviour paints him as an unashamedly double-faced, artfully deceptive and desperate politician being consumed by the fire of his own bitterness. Few find it hard to disagree with those who are of the view that his impeachment really took a heavy toll on him, knocking off a significant portion of his senses. His pronouncements lack a sense of balance and logic, pointing to someone who has lost his marbles.
Granted, the world of politics can get murky and many politicians are compelled to misrepresent facts at one point or another. But Rigathi has taken mendacity to a despicably new level. A politician with a future maintains some level of consistency in his messaging.
As it stands, the main currency of his politics is his immeasurable bitterness against the president. He wrongly believes that revival of his doomed political career is dependent on persistently hurling the vilest insults at the head of State. Far from it. The truth of the matter is that this inexplicable rancour and venom against Dr. Ruto will hammer the last nail in whatever remains of his political career.
