Impeached Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has alleged that two failed assassination attempts were made on his life before the move to impeach him.
Speaking on Sunday after being discharged from Karen Hospital, Gachagua claimed the impeachment plan was hatched after these assassination plots failed.
He detailed that the first attempt occurred in Kisumu at the end of August, while the second took place in Nyeri just days later.
According to Gachagua, his team detected poison in both instances, allowing him to escape unharmed.
He added that the second attempt involved the National Intelligence Service (NIS), which he reported.
“On August 30 in Kisumu, undercover security agents entered my room and bugged it. One of them tried to poison my food, but we detected it in time and escaped the plan,” Gachagua claimed. “On September 3, another team from the NIS tried to poison food meant for me and the Kikuyu Council of Elders in Nyeri.”
Gachagua further stated that after the assassination attempts failed, the impeachment motion was initiated.
He has since raised concerns about his safety, accusing President William Ruto of withdrawing his security detail and leaving him and his family vulnerable.
“As I go home today, I have no security,” Gachagua said. “If anything happens to me or my family, President William Ruto should be held responsible.”
The former deputy president also drew comparisons between his situation and that of Kenneth Matiba, a politician who was detained under former President Daniel Moi’s regime and later suffered a stroke.
“President Ruto wants to take me down the same path President Moi took Kenneth Matiba,” Gachagua said. “He pushed Matiba to the point of getting a stroke, which eventually led to his death.”
Gachagua attributed his fallout with the president to his outspokenness, stating that he had opposed certain policies. “My only problem with President Ruto was telling him the truth. I advised him not to overtax people and not to evict people without compensation,” he added.
