Nyeri County is set for a politically supercharged weekend, with Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen expected to lead a high-level government delegation to a church service-cum-fundraiser at AIPCA Church, Nyeri Town Cathedral on Sunday.
A day earlier, Deputy President Kithure Kindiki will preside over another major government event dubbed “Kieni Economic Empowerment Initiative” in Kieni Constituency, hosted by area MP Njoroge Wainaina.
These events are widely seen as part of a broader strategy by President William Ruto’s allies to counter the growing defiance of former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, who has positioned himself as the de facto Mt Kenya political kingpin.
Last weekend, Murkomen issued a stern warning to Gachagua, threatening his arrest over remarks deemed inciteful and a threat to national security. Appearing on a local media station, Gachagua claimed that there would be post-election bloodshed if President Ruto were declared the winner of the 2027 presidential election. “He (Gachagua) is not above the law,” Murkomen said bluntly.
Murkomen, whose wife hails from Nyeri, is expected to use the church platform to endear himself to Mt Kenya voters, reinforce government support in the region, and sustain political pressure on Gachagua.
Among those expected at the Sunday fundraiser are staunch Ruto loyalists and political operatives, including National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah, Kapseret MP Oscar Sudi, Presidential Advisor Dennis Itumbi, Public Service CS Geoffrey Ruku, and Homa Bay Town MP George Kaluma.
Meanwhile, Gachagua is reportedly planning a rival “meet-the-people” tour of Nyeri Town on the same day, in what insiders view as a strategic move to protect his turf from political encroachment. His efforts are particularly focused on neutralising the influence of his former advisor and ex-Nyeri Town MP Ngunjiri Wambugu, who defected from his camp just last week.
Wambugu is said to be preparing for a political comeback, eyeing the Nyeri Town parliamentary seat he lost in the last general election to UDA’s Duncan Maina Mathenge (DMM).
