Fresh details have emerged on why President William Ruto settled on Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki as his nominee for the position of Deputy President.

Documents seen by the People Daily show that Kindiki battled it out among five other candidates who had been short-listed for the second-in-command position following the decision of the Senate to uphold the National Assembly’s impeachment of Rigathi Gachagua.

The details show that among the candidates who had been initially short-listed for the position include Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi, Leader of Majority and Kikuyu MP Kimani Ichung’wah, Governors Anne Waiguru (Kirinyaga), Embu’s Cecily Mbarire and Irungu Kang’ata of Murang’a.

The race then was, however, narrowed down to three candidates—Kindiki, Ichung’wah and Mbarire.

It was revealed that  Prof Kindiki’s Mt Kenya roots–Gachagua hails from the region– and the Kenya Kwanza pre-election agreement favoured the constitutional lawyer.  There is also the impression that the CS was not such a polarising figure and enjoys support across Kenya Kwanza.

“The president was given a long list on the evening of October 17 and by the end of the day, he had settled on three and then later on Kindiki after he emerged as the top contender,” said the source who did want their identity revealed.

Insiders aware of the intrigues revealed that when the impeachment motion was going on, the Registrar of Political Parties (RPP) Ann Nderitu was asked to furnish the State House with details of the six candidates for them to make an informed decision. Among the details that the Registrar was asked to forward to the State House included the membership of the candidates to any political party and whether the candidates were officials of any political party.

The requirements are in line with Section 22 of the Elections Act, 2011 which outlines the qualifications for a candidate for the office of the Deputy President. An eligible candidate must submit a number of documents to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) including certified copies of educational qualification certificates, copies of a National Identity Card or a valid Passport (a document used by a candidate to register as a voter) and a duly-filled a nomination certificate from a fully registered political party.

Pre-election deal

The fresh details come hardly days after Waiguru and Kang’ata had positioned themselves to take over the said seat. The president, it was understood, was keen on having a person from Mount Kenya take over the seat due to their numbers, a move that insiders claim technically locked out Mudavadi from the race.

Another reason which worked against Mudavadi was the pre-election agreement between President Ruto’s United Democratic Alliance (UDA), Amani National Congress (ANC) and Moses Wetangula’s Ford Kenya, which reserved the DP’s position for UDA.

Under that deal, Mudavadi was allocated the number three position, the Prime Cabinet Secretary, while Wetangula took the National Assembly Speaker’s position.

Kang’ata who is known to be close enough to the President was in the last few days engaged in intense lobbying including meeting with opposition leader Raila Odinga who recently secured Cabinet appointments for four of his top allies.

Waiguru on the other hand launched a new strategy to enable her to clinch the seat to the extent that she even unveiled a website that highlighted her works in public service. The website showcased Waiguru’s journey from a Technical Advisor for Public Sector Reforms during President Mwai Kibaki’s era to serving as Cabinet Secretary and later Governor.

Weighty issues

The new details come at a time when Gachagua has filed a number of petitions opposing the swearing-in of Kindiki until the matter is heard and determined.

Kindiki was supposed to be sworn in on Saturday, a day after the Senate upheld the decision of the National Assembly but this did not materialise after David Munyi Mathenge and Peter Gichobi Kamotho filed a petition in a Kirinyaga court blocking the implementation of the decision until the matter is determined.

Justice Richard Mwongo granted the orders stopping Kindiki from assuming office pending the hearing of the application.

 “It is hereby ordered that in the light of the urgency of the matter and weighty issues raised therein, we direct that the matter be served and responded to forthwith for hearing inter partes on Tuesday, October 22, 2024, at 11 am,” the Order read.