Tuesday, April 8,
2025 - Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has strongly denied
allegations that he demanded Ksh 10 billion from President William Ruto after
the 2022 General Elections to coordinate political activities in the Mt. Kenya
region.
Speaking during an interview on KTN News on Monday, Gachagua termed the claims as “baseless” and a
calculated move to damage his reputation in Central Kenya.
“I never blackmailed the President. If that were the case,
it would have been the first charge during the efforts to force me out of
office,” Gachagua stated.
Gachagua further accused President Ruto, the National
Intelligence Service (NIS), and former Interior CS Prof. Kithure Kindiki of
being behind a political plot to oust him.
He questioned the inconsistency in the reasons given for his
removal, saying,
“In Western Kenya, he said I was incompetent and tribal.”
“In North Eastern, he claimed I was divisive.”
“In Nyanza, he called me primitive and corrupt… But when he
came to Mt. Kenya, none of that was mentioned.”
“Instead, he claimed I had asked for Ksh.10 billion.”
Gachagua also took aim at Ruto’s allies, including Dennis
Itumbi and Kimani Ichung’wah, for allegedly giving conflicting accounts about
the purported demand.
“I invested heavily in his campaign - I’m not the type to go
around asking him for money,” he added.
The allegations re-emerged during President Ruto’s tour of
Mt Kenya, where he claimed that Gachagua had threatened to make him a one-term President
if he didn’t give in to his demands.
“I was told, ‘I can make you a
one-term president unless you give me Ksh.10 billion to organize politics in
the region.’ I refused.”
“If my fate is to be a one-term president,
so be it,” Ruto revealed.
The Kenyan DAILY POST
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