Gachagua: Ruto finances politicians to hire goons to disrupt our meetings
By Ndiritu Wanjiru, April 20, 2026Rigathi Gachagua, a former deputy president, has increased his attack on President William Ruto, claiming that the head of state is sponsoring some politicians to organise and pay groups he referred to as ‘goons’ in a well-planned move to disrupt his political meetings and political rallies.
In an exclusive interview with Kameme TV on Monday, April 20, 2026, Gachagua asserted that the trend of disruption of his political activities is calculated and planned and is being experienced in different sections of the Mount Kenya region, where he has been carrying out outreach programmes and consultative meetings with locals and local leaders.
“We disagreed with Ruto over the efforts to divide the mountain, and that is why he has taken me out of the office. His initial mission was to intimidate the churches to host me, but the churches replied that the church is free to all… Ruto is funding the politicians to hire goons to interrupt our meetings,” Gachagua said.
Gachagua also asserted that the interruptions are not isolated acts but instead are part of a larger political plan where the use of state power, allied political leaders, and, in certain instances, the use or participation of police officers is involved.
To him, this is being done with the intention of frustrating his increasing political mobilisation in the region.
Gachagua: NPS is compromised
The former deputy president also slammed the National Police Service for compromising its independence, claiming that it is actually being influenced and controlled by the top government officials.
He singled out the Interior Cabinet Secretary, Kipchumba Murkomen; the Principal Secretary, Raymond Omollo; and the Majority Leader of the National Assembly, Kimani Ichungwah, as having been part of what he referred to as the political machinery that monitored interference in activities of the opposition.
Gachagua said that these leaders are on the front line of what he termed ‘organised political intimidation and plotting of disruptions to his meetings’.
He insisted that the purported acts are meant to scare leaders and locals in the Mount Kenya region, which, in his opinion, has recently started to politically decouple from President Ruto.
Gachagua reasoned that when these tactics are not controlled, they are prone to destroy democratic rights, such as the right of citizens and leaders to freely hold meetings, associate, and voice their political opinions without intimidation or interference.
The former deputy president had vowed not to be discouraged from carrying on with his political tours, saying that he is still determined to reach out to citizens in all parts of the country and consolidate his political ground.