Former Trade Cabinet Secretary and Chama Cha Kazi (CCK) party leader Moses Kuria has hit back at former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua after the latter accused him of colluding with President William Ruto to influence the Mbeere North by-election.
Gachagua, in an interview on Wednesday, December 10, alleged that Kuria worked closely with Ruto to undermine his political influence and destabilise votes in the constituency.
In a fierce clapback, Kuria challenged the DCP leader to clarify whether he believed his votes were stolen or whether he (Kuria) directly took them, insisting the accusations were contradictory.
"My brother Rigathi Gachagua, make up your mind. Is it me who took your votes, or were your votes stolen?" Kuria asked through a post on his social media accounts.
In the interview, Gachagua noted that after sitting down with the elders from the region, he came to understand that his initial candidate, Duncan Mbui, who was supposed to run in the by-election using the DCP party ticket, and Newton Kariuki, the Democratic Party (DP) candidate, both came from the same clan.
"The elders told me, given the clan dynamics, it won't be good if we have the two candidates. They asked me to drop my candidate, and it made a lot of sense because I understand the Mbeere people. So I withdrew the candidate," Gachagua stated.
After being dropped by Gachagua's party, Mbui defected to Kuria's CCK and was given the party ticket to vie for the parliamentary seat, a move Gachagua saw as a tactic by the government to influence votes so that Newton Kariuki would not win.
"The government approached Kuria. His party, CCK, is one of the many wheelbarrows in the mountain. President Ruto called Kuria to get Mbui. He got 2,500 votes; because of the clan dynamics, those votes would have gone to Newton Kariuki." Gachagua retorted.
In the Mbeere North November 27 by-election, President Ruto's UDA candidate, Leo Wa Muthende, won by 15,802 votes, followed closely by Newton Kariuki, alias Karish, who garnered 15,308 votes. Duncan Mbui came in distant third with 2,480.
The by-election was a high-stakes political showdown between the ruling UDA party and the United Opposition led by Gachagua, marking the first election since the dramatic impeachment of the former DP.
Kuria further announced that his Chama Cha Kazi party would join the Karish petition as an interested party, stating that the courtroom would be the most appropriate venue for Gachagua to substantiate his claims.
He also issued a warning against what he described as attempts by Gachagua to impose political dictatorship in the Mt Kenya region, declaring that he would not allow such political control to take root.
