Gachagua faults police for slow progress after Othaya church attack
By Cynthia Lodite, January 27, 2026Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has expressed joy after a section of the Nyandarua Member of the County Assembly leaders visited him at his residence, checking up on him after the chaos in Othaya.
Taking to his official X account on Tuesday, January 27, 2026, elated Gachagua lauded the team for showing up for him.
“I wish to thank Nyandarua MCAs who called on me at the Wamunyoro residence this afternoon to check on me after the brutal gun attack by a killer police squad,” Gachagua stated.
Recounting the Sunday, January 25, 2026, attack in Othaya, Gachagua revealed their conversation which he says he narrated to them the ordeal.
“I recounted to them the traumatic experience that children, women, men and leaders went through in one of our darkest days in recent times where police attack a place of worship with clear intent and instructions to kill,” Gachagua stated.
He went on linking the Othaya church attack to the one at Kiambaa Church back in 2008, which left a significant number of people dead after being burnt alive.
Slow police progress
On his part, Gachagua expressed his disappointment with the National Police that forty-eight hours after the incident, no single arrest had been made despite the assurance that swift action would be taken.
“The senseless attack reminds us of the January 2nd 2008, attack of Kiambaa Church, where women and children were burnt alive. The leaders were shocked that 48 hours after the horrendous attack, no single arrest had been made despite the assurance that swift action would be taken,” he explained.
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Gachagua recently accused specific individuals and police officers of violently attacking worshippers at Witima ACK Church in Othaya, Nyeri County.
He made his remarks at an evening press conference following the disruption of a service he attended on Sunday, January 25, 2026.
According to Gachagua, teargas filled the church compound, people were injured, vehicles were damaged, and one of his own cars was set on fire. He pointed to a group that had gathered earlier that day.
“Today in Witima, ACK Church, a gang of about 15 police officers, rogue officers under the command of two bodyguards, belonging to the guard of a Woman Rep,” Gachagua said on Sunday, January 25, 2026.
He added that the group had met at a home in Nyeri in the morning for breakfast and a briefing.
Gachagua claimed the group later moved to Witima armed with AK-47 rifles and tear gas canisters.
“They injured women and children and hurt many people. The police torched one of my vehicles, a Toyota Land Cruiser, registration KDK 002. They deflated the tyres of everyone who was in church and caused untold damage to vehicles. They beat people outside the church mercilessly,” he said.
He also identified the vehicles used in the attack. “The attackers came in a matatu. They were armed with AK-47s. We have collected some 7.62-millimetre cartridges, which they brought to kill. They were aiming for our blood,” Gachagua added.