Former Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu has declared his intention to contest the Kisii gubernatorial seat in the 2027 General Election.

Machogu took to his social media platforms, where he updated his profile banners to reflect his bid for the Kisii County top seat.

The move comes days after a period of political silence following his dismissal from the Cabinet by President William Ruto in the aftermath of the Gen Z protests. He was replaced by the current Education Cabinet Secretary, Julius Migosi Ogamba.

Since then, Machogu had largely kept a low profile but re-emerged in 2025, occasionally appearing alongside former Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i during tours aimed at popularising Matiang’i’s presidential bid across Kisii County.

During the tours, Machogu urged residents of Kisii to rally behind their son, Matiang’i, who was recently named the Jubilee Party’s presidential candidate for the 2027 General Election.

“We now have our own son, Dr Fred Matiang’i. Let us unite behind him. We cannot afford to repeat the mistakes of the past. We are already in talks with Professor Sam Ongeri, and we are committed to bringing our people together.”

Blaming Kisii MPs

He accused President Ruto of betraying the Kisii community by firing him from the Cabinet.

Machogu also launched an attack on the United Democratic Alliance (UDA), the party he used to contest the 2022 Kisii gubernatorial race, in which he was defeated by the incumbent governor, Simba Arati. He claimed that the UDA had lost its political strength.

“Do you want me to tell you what has happened to the wheelbarrow these days? The wheelbarrow has burst and turned into scrap,” Machogu said.

Machogu’s cabinet exit

He further attributed his exit from government to Kisii MPs, singling out South Mugirango MP Silvanus Osoro and Nyaribari Chache MP Zaheer Jhanda, whom he accused of being behind his ouster.

“These brothers of mine know that when I was in government, I took them to meet William Samoei Ruto and told him what the Kisii community wanted. When we were campaigning, we talked about ‘money in the pocket’ and ‘bottom-up’. Are our people meant to be given Ksh 64? Isn’t that insulting?” he posed.

He added that government funds are often presented as economic empowerment, yet fail to benefit ordinary citizens.

Machogu is now set to face Governor Simba Arati at the ballot, with Kisii Senator Richard Onyonka also having declared interest in the gubernatorial race.