Trodden path: Parallels in fate of Gachagua and VP Karanja

Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua during a trek along Mawingu Trail on the slopes of Mt. Kenya. [DPCS]

The script used to fight Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua bears a lot of similarities with the one used when Josephat Njuguna Karanja, the fifth vice president of Kenya, was kicked out of office by President Daniel arap Moi in 1989.

First, MPs from his own Kikuyu community were used as the attack dogs that quickly pounced on Karanja at lightning speed and were very hostile to him both inside and outside Parliament.

They raised all manner of accusations, just like the grounds of impeachment listed against Gachagua, including plotting to take over power. And like Gachagua whose troubles started when his boss was in New York two weeks ago, Karanja was also targeted when Moi was away in Tanzania.

As in Gachagua’s case, Karanja’s troubles began with claims at political rallies that he was undermining the President and other leaders by demanding that they kneel before him. Karanja’s detractors said he had no legitimacy because he had been imposed on the people of Mathare constituency after their MP Andrew Ngumba fled the country.

Today, some UDA MPs from Mt Kenya say Gachagua forced his way to become deputy president against the wishes of majority party MPs from his region who had allegedly voted in favour of Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki by a margin of 20 to one.

Like Gachagua who became deputy president after serving for only one term in Parliament, Karanja was elected through a by-election in 1986 before becoming vice president in March 1988 to May 1989 when he resigned.

A vote of no confidence motion tabled against the former vice president by Embakasi MP David Mwenje forced the historian to resign.  He later rekindled his political life when he was elected MP for Githunguri in 1992.

Gachagua has so far served for two years, surpassing the one year that Karanja stayed in office but is now facing an impeachment motion, a process that is almost similar to the vote of no confidence that the latter faced.

Other allegations levelled against the former University of Nairobi vice chancellor in 1989 included serving foreign masters using his United Kingdom links, where he had served as a high commissioner and that he also used the influence of his Ugandan wife to undermine the country.

The current deputy president is under siege over claims that he is promoting ethnic and divisive politics, by repeatedly advocating for the political and economic interests of people from the Mt Kenya region.

The same tag that Karanja carried when he began advocating for the unity of the Gikuyu, Embu and Meru communities, which were at the time referred to as GEMA a, move that created many enemies who thought he was building his power base, is indeed the same as Gachagua has also been accused by President William Ruto’s allies of throwing his weight around and masquerading to be the Mt Kenya kingpin, a title the Deputy President himself insists belongs to former President Uhuru Kenyatta.

A few days ago, MPs George Kariuki (Ndia), Kururia Njoroge (Gatundu North), Thuku Kwenya (Kinangop) and Irene Njoki (Bahati), told him that his political rhetoric will adversely affect the people of Mt Kenya region.

“President Ruto would still have been elected even he if he had picked a different person as his running mate. We as Mt Kenya leaders should not be abusive to our father who is the president of the country,” said Kwenya.

The MPs further told the Deputy President that the people of Mt Kenya voted overwhelmingly for President Ruto, not because they were told to do so by anyone close to him but because of the policies he advocated and their love for the leader.

 “You cannot be the Deputy President and then run around expressing your dissatisfaction against the President at every rally in Githurai, Gatundu, Sagana, Meru and other places,” said Kariuki.

A few weeks ago, MPs from Mt Kenya East led by Mbeere North MP Geoffrey Ruku met at a hotel in Embu and decided to break ranks with Gachagua and their Mt Kenya West counterparts in their political engagements with President Ruto.

Days later, they appeared to have made a strategic retreat, when they again appeared with other MPs from the whole Mt Kenya region, all totalling 46 in number to announce that Prof Kindiki would be their link to the President going forward.

Sources in President Ruto’s inner circle have indicated that there is a very big chance of Kindiki becoming the next Deputy President should Gachagua be dismissed from office.

Peter Kagwanja, a seasoned observer and analyst of Mt Kenya politics, thinks Ruto would now prefer to work with Kindiki because he is more of a Kenya Kwanza insider whose relationship with the President and his allies is more cordial.

“It is divide the mountain and rule strategy just like Moi did with Mwai Kibaki, Karanja and even George Saitoti. He wants a safer pair of hands and that is why Kindiki will be more favourable to him than Gachagua,” says Prof.