Outspoken politician Moses Kuria has openly criticized former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, accusing him of eroding the Mount Kenya community’s brand and diminishing their national value.
Kuria, who now serves as President William Ruto’s Senior Economic Advisor, said he will never forgive Gachagua for actions that he believes tarnished the reputation of their community and the Kenya Kwanza administration.
Speaking during an interview on Citizen TV on Wednesday night, Kuria lamented that Gachagua’s alleged hunger for power undermined the collective promises they made to the Kenyan people during the 2022 campaigns.
“From my community, people in this country, unfairly so, have always said Kikuyus and Mt. Kenya people cannot vote for another person from another tribe.
In 2022, we debunked that, and our brand value as a community went up. I felt good to be a Kikuyu,” Kuria said.
“Two years later, no matter how much the provocation, we now go again and diminish that brand. People were telling us that Uhuru Kenyatta, despite everything, he was patient.
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That adds to our brand value. I feel so ashamed and embarrassed to be associated with a [person] that says that I cannot wait for five years…that is a serious erosion of the brand value of my community, and I will never forgive Rigathi Gachagua for that.”
Kuria also accused the former DP of engineering his own political downfall through divisive leadership, threats, and blackmail. He described Gachagua’s impeachment by both Houses of Parliament as an “own goal,” emphasizing that the former deputy head of state alienated himself from legislators who ultimately voted for his removal.
“Rigathi Gachagua is my friend. We served together; I was his boss in the Transport committee in Parliament. We campaigned together for the Kenya Kwanza government. Unfortunately, the impeached former Deputy President did not do himself a lot of favours,” Kuria stated.
He noted that while he initially opposed Gachagua’s impeachment, he eventually supported the motion due to Gachagua’s actions, which included allegedly threatening MPs and undermining their growth as leaders.
“When somebody goes out there and says, ‘By December, all of you will be dead men and women walking,’ is that very wise? That was my first problem. These people [MPs] may not be the best, but we owe it to them to mentor them,” Kuria said. “Threatening and blackmailing leaders, instead of helping them to grow, was crime number one.”
Kuria expressed regret over Gachagua’s leadership trajectory, emphasizing the damage it caused not only to Mount Kenya’s political reputation but also to the government’s unity.
“After only two years, how do I now run away from the commitment that we made together? I feel ashamed that we had to endure such a divisive moment that could have been avoided with patience and strategic thinking,” he said.
