Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has expressed that he has no regrets about supporting President William Ruto in the 2022 general elections, despite their subsequent fallout and his impeachment in October 2024.
Speaking in a televised interview from his Karen residence on Sunday, December 1, 2024, Gachagua reflected on the lessons he learned from his time working with Ruto and his political journey since.
“I don’t regret having supported President William Ruto; I got the opportunity to serve and to learn, and I am a wiser person, knowledgeable, and I have more experience,” Gachagua said.
He added that the mistakes he made during his brief tenure in office would not be repeated.
At the height of his impeachment trial, Gachagua faced criticism from his political opponents in the Mount Kenya region.
They accused him of entering into a political alliance with Ruto without a formal agreement, unlike other prominent political figures who had written contracts with the president.
In a revealing statement, Gachagua admitted that he had entered into his political arrangement with Ruto based on trust.
He explained that unlike Senate Speaker Amason Kingi, National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula, Labour CS Alfred Mutua, and Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi, who all had written agreements with Ruto, his was based on personal belief and confidence in the president.
“The only regret I have is that I dealt with President William Ruto as a Christian. I trusted him, I believed in him, and whatever he told me, I took it as the truth and acted blindly,” Gachagua confessed.
He emphasized that, given the chance again, he would approach political dealings with more caution. “Another day, given another opportunity, I’ll engage him as a politician and as a politician you trust nobody,” he added.
