Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has dismissed claims that he threatened President William Ruto in his February 23, 2025, remarks in Meru County regarding Chief Justice Martha Koome’s potential ouster.

In his Sunday address to Meru residents, Gachagua warned Ruto against visiting Meru if Koome is ousted.

“I’m telling the President if you remove Martha Koome, don’t set foot here in Meru. You removed Rigathi Gachagua, and the people of the Mountain remained silent, and you thought they were cowards. We are telling you, President; you plot to remove Martha Koome and stay in Nairobi; don’t set foot here in Meru again!” he cautioned.

Gachagua defends himself

However, during an interview on a local media station on Monday, February 24, 2025, Gachagua defended his statements, insisting they were observations about political realities rather than threats.

“All I was doing when I was in Meru was not threatening the President; I was stating facts. 90 per cent of the people in Meru are done with him; the remaining ten per cent if he goes ahead to remove Martha Koome as Chief Justice and President of the Supreme Court, will lose the other ten per cent,” he explained.

Factual advice

The former deputy president maintained that he was merely advising President Ruto based on his assessment of the political climate in the region.

“I was telling him, there’s no need to come to Meru anymore because people will be cold and indifferent. I just gave him advice. I did not even say he should not come to Meru,” he clarified.

Gachagua claimed that his previous counsel to the president had been disregarded.

“Many times I have offered free advice to the president. When I was in office, I told him not to touch the mountain, not to interfere with mountain politics, and not to attempt to divide Mt. Kenya East and West,” Gachagua explained.

“He disregarded me, called me primitive and retrogressive, and called me tribal. Today it has come to pass; he has lost the mountain completely,” he asserted.

Gachagua further noted that Ruto risks facing hostility if he disregards the concerns of the local population.

“I was not threatening the president, I could not threaten him, I just told him the truth. If you succeed in removing Martha Koome, your relationship with the people of Meru is irreparably damaged, and there’s no need for you to come to Meru because you will get a very hostile reception,” he said.