Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has started giving out bits by bits on what transpired that led to his ouster as second in command.
Speaking on Sunday, November 24, 2024, Gachagua went all out by revealing that his opposition to the Adani takeover deal created a rift between him and his then boss, President William Ruto.
Gachagua told the congregants that President Ruto immediately started detecting him after he told him face-to-face that the Adani deal was marred with controversy and had been widely rejected by the people.
“Mimi nilimwambia Rais William Ruto hii maneno ya Adani iko na ukora. This is auctioning the country, and the people, Mr. President, don’t want it.
“Akanichukia. Ikasemekana mimi napinga miradi ya serikali. Sasa ufisadi ni mradi wa serikali? That is corruption; it is not a government programme,” Gachagua stated.
(I told President William Ruto that the Adani deal was shady. This is auctioning the country, and the people don’t want it.
(He hated me, and then it emerged that I was opposing government projects. Now, is corruption part of government projects? That is corruption, and it’s not part of a government programme.)
While revealing that the Adani deal led to their fallout, Gachagua questioned the quality of Members of Parliament, noting that it was naive for them to give Ruto a standing ovation for cancelling the Adani deals bearing in mind that it was in the public domain that the firm was controversial.
He further reprimanded the Head of State, insisting that the cancellation did not come from his heart but was after the indictment of some of the Adani Group executives by the US government.
“Hata saizi President amesema ni mbaya hakukuwa na haja na kumpigia makofi kwa sababu haikutoka kwa roho yake. Hio ilikuwa maneno ya America. (Now when the president has said that the deal was bad, there was no need to clap for him because that did not come from his heart but because of the firm indictment in the US),” Gachagua insisted.
Confrontation over demolitions
At the same time, Gachagua for the first time revealed that he opposed a direct order from Ruto to oversee demolitions. Speaking after a church service, Gachagua noted that he told the Head of State straight to his face that it is better he lose his job than supervise demolitions.
Gachagua maintained that they openly vowed not to demolish people’s property in 2022 during their campaigns.
“Sasa rais ameniambia mimi Rigathi Gachagua niende nisimamie maskini wa bomolewe. Mimi!
“Nikamuuliza rais, unanijua vizuri mimi nikasimamie watu wabomolewe. Mimi nilisema afadhali niende nyumbani kuliko kuenda kobomolea watu maskini,” he claimed.
(The president told me to go oversee the demolitions of poor people’s houses. I asked the president. Do you really know me well enough that I should go and oversee the demolitions? I said it is better I lose my job than to go and oversee the demolitions.)
To wrap up his expose on his fallout with Ruto, Gachagua told the Head of State to read John 8:31, which says, ‘If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.’
