Kenya’s impeached Deputy President alleges attempts on his life

In his first public remarks since the Senate voted for his impeachment, Kenya’s Rigathi Gachagua detailed the “year of continual persecution and stress” he claims to have endured from President William Ruto.

After being discharged from Nairobi’s Karen Hospital, Gachagua noted that his security detail had been withdrawn while he was “fighting for his life.”

“I want Kenyans to know that as I return home, I have no security. If anything happens to me or my family, President Ruto must be held accountable,” he asserted.

He accused the president of “viciously” violating a court order by removing his security.

The High Court has issued a temporary injunction preventing the replacement of Gachagua as deputy president. Reflecting on the past year, he said, “It has been very difficult, but I am resilient. What happened on October 17 is the result of ongoing persecution and stress.”

Gachagua alleged that President Ruto wanted him to experience the same fate as Kenneth Matiba, who suffered greatly under former President Daniel arap Moi. “He pushed Matiba until he had a stroke and eventually died,” Gachagua claimed.

He also described an alleged attempt on his life, stating, “On August 30, in Kisumu, undercover agents bugged my room, and one tried to poison my food. Fortunately, we detected it in time.” He added that on September 3, another group attempted to poison food meant for him and the Kikuyu council of elders.

Discharged from the hospital on October 20 after being treated for a “life-threatening condition,” Gachagua dismissed the 11 charges against him in the impeachment trial as “malice and fiction.”

“It was a political maneuver by the president to eliminate me,” he stated.

He expressed doubts about the president’s intentions, suggesting that Ruto only needed his support to win the election due to his influence in the Mount Kenya region. Gachagua believes his “only crime” was speaking “the truth” as the sole elected official in Ruto’s cabinet who could do so.

President Ruto has not yet responded to these allegations.