Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has strongly criticized certain close associates of President William Ruto, asserting that he will not allow them to dictate his actions.
Gachagua emphasized that some of Ruto’s assistants and bloggers have been attempting to direct him on his responsibilities, contrary to established protocol, which dictates that he only answers to the Head of State.
“There are some people who are friends with the president who want to be my boss. Ati wewe kwa sababu ni rafiki ya Rais ukue boss wangu (Just because you are the President’s friend you want to become my boss)? ,” the DP posed
“Even some of the people wanamsaidia kazi, PAs wake, wanataka kuniamrisha vile nitafanya kazi. Inawezekana? (His (Ruto) PAs want to order me on how to work. Is that Possible?) Even his bloggers want to tell me what to do.”
He added that he owes his allegiance to the people of Kenya and President William Ruto whom he vowed to heed his directive to the latter.
“Lakini mimi simnanijua. Boss yangu ni wawili: wananchi wa Kenya and President Ruto (But you know me. My bosses are two: the people of Kenya and President Ruto). Whatever the president has told me to do I have done. And I will continue to do, respect him and be loyal to him,” he said.
The DP went on to say that he was elected by the people of Kenya and he will respect their interests and that of President Ruto.
“I will not allow people who hang around President Ruto, his friends, to think that they can be my boss,” he said.
“President Ruto is my boss, if you are friends with him keep your friendship but leave me alone.”
While revisiting the intrigues that saw him picked as President Ruto’s running mate ahead of the 2022 elections, the DP said the Head of State settled on him because he saw his abilities.
He said despite the efforts of a small group advising the president against picking him, over claims that he would fail if he made the decision, Ruto eventually settled on him.
“The president applied his mind as a seasoned politician and came to the conclusion that the person, at that time, who looked capable of helping him to mobilise the vote is Righathi Gachagua,” he said.
“He applied his mind that the person who will assist him to run the affairs of this country is Gachagua. Some of them have never moved on. These politics you are seeing is that small group.”
The DP went on to say that the same group wanted him to be locked out of the Deputy Presidential debate on the grounds that he was not capable of articulating issues well.
“I told the president he made the right decision to pick me. I assured him that I would beat that lady (Martha Karua) in that debate and by 11 pm she will not have relevance in Kenyan Politics. Did I not perform well at that debate?” he posed.
The DP says the people who were against President Ruto’s bid in 2022 are the same group leading the onslaught against him in government.
He however warned that the consequences of their actions will impact the government negatively and not him.
“You may think you are destabilizing Gachagua but you are not. You are destabilizing the government of President Ruto,” Gachagua said.
