Mithika Linturi: Mbeere North campaign cost govt Ksh600M
By Kenneth Mwenda, November 29, 2025Former Meru Senator Mithika Linturi has claimed that the Mbeere North by-election campaign had cost the government Ksh600 million. Linturi, who was campaigning for Democratic Party candidate Newton Kariuki, popularly known as Karish, said the level of spending far exceeded normal costs.
“14 days nimekuwa hapa campaign, wewe umeona chopper 16. Hapa ata Kenya One ilikuwa imepeanwa ikuje, ile ya Air Force. Tumeona vifaru hapa,” Linturi said during the burial of Lenny Kivuti’s mother in Embu on Saturday, November 29, 2025.
“Kuja kupigana kutafuta kiti ya mbunge. 600 million has been spent kutafuta kiti ya MP. In normal circumstances, sababu nimeomba kura, we spend around 10 million. Kutafuta kiti ya whole constituency. 600 million means 60 members of parliament. Ile pesa imetumika hapa mbeere North.”
The comments came amid a heated political atmosphere following the tightly contested by-election. UDA candidate Leonard Muriuki wa Muthende narrowly defeated Kariuki by 494 votes. According to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), Muthende received 15,802 votes against Kariuki’s 15,308.
The Mbeere North by-election has emerged as a crucial test of political influence in Mt Kenya between the opposition and the government.
Ruku challenges Gachagua’s influence
Public Service Cabinet Secretary Geoffrey Ruku and Mbeere North MP-elect Muthende have used the by-election result to question former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua’s influence in Mt Kenya politics.
Speaking at Embu Level 5 Hospital during a visit to a UDA mobiliser attacked during the campaign, Ruku said the result cemented Deputy President Kithure Kindiki as the region’s dominant political force.
Ruku addressed Gachagua directly, urging him to leave active politics.
“Wewe Rigathi Gachagua enda nyumbani kwako. Mkae hapo na Pastor Dorcas. Mkunywe uji, vijana wako waoe, upate watoto wajukuu, ulee watoto wajukuu, pamoja na kondoo na mbuzi pale Wamunyoro. Uwache kusumbua watu wa hii eneo ya Mlima Kenya,” Ruku said.
Ruku said the Mbeere North outcome reflected voters’ preference for development-focused leadership over divisive politics. He added that the victory of the UDA candidate confirmed Kindiki’s growing authority in the region.
The by-election result has sparked wider debate in Mt Kenya politics. Former Bahati MP Kimani Ngunjiri said the outcome proved Kindiki now commands more support than Gachagua.
“Yule aliyekuwa anasema yeye ni kiongozi wa Mt Kenya ajuwe una nguvu kuliko yeye… kwa sababu uliweza kuprove na hii kiti ya Mbeere,” Ngunjiri said.