Bid to reconcile Uhuru, Ruto flops – Weekly Citizen

The relationship between Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto has hit rock bottom low after the head of state turned down overtures for a reconciliatory meeting to iron out their political differences that have come out in the public glare.
A close associate of the DP disclosed that Ruto allies at one time approached the president’s uncle, George Muhoho, to organise a meeting between him and Uhuru to sort out issues but not much was achieved.

Others have been trying to use Jubilee parliamentary group meeting to bring together Uhuru and Ruto but the president declined to call the meeting.
DP allies have also reached out to Uhuru’s younger brother Muhoho.We could not establish if it is true that Ruto’s camp has also tried to engage the Catholic church hoping the top clergyman, Cardinal John Njue, who is a close friend of the Kenyattas, would mediate in the emerging dispute that may disintegrate the government if not well handled.
To warm his way to the Catholic church fraternity, Ruto started by first presenting a brand new Mitsubishi Pajero as a gift to the Catholic Archbishop Phillip Anyolo.
The deputy president presented the gift to the clergyman during his installation ceremony in Kisumu at an event which was also attended by Raila Odinga.
During the occasion, the DP said ‘contributions’ for the vehicle’s purchase had been made by the president, leaders from the South Rift and a section of western Kenya leaders.
Archbishop Anyolo took over from Bishop Zacchaeus Okoth who served for the past 50 years.
It was after realising Ruto’s game plan to use the church to reach out to the president that Raila went into offensive by sensationally claiming Pope Francis had directed Kisumu Archbishop to return the car gift he received from the deputy president.
“Recently, during the installation of Archbishop of Catholic Diocese of Kisumu, someone took a vehicle to the bishop as a gift. When the Pope was informed that the bishop had received a car gift, he ordered that the vehicle be returned. And true to his instructions, the car was returned because it was acquired from proceeds of corruption,” the opposition leader told the mourners.
But the deputy president struck back, dismissing as lies claims by Raila that the car gift was rejected by the church.
Also, contrary to Raila’s claims, Archbishop Anyolo explained that the vehicle was neither rejected by the church nor did he return it to the donor.
And recently, the Catholic Church directed priests to bar politicians from politicking during their services. The resolution was made at the Conference of Bishops.
That all is not well between Uhuru and Ruto, a visibly fired-up president tore into critics of the handshake and termed as “pettiness” the claims that the truce with Raila was a political machination aimed at 2022.
He went on to say that Raila has never told him he wants to be president in 2022 and neither has he ever told him he wants to continue to be president in 2022.
Remember, you favourite Weekly Citizen reported that Raila will to face Ruto in 2022. Uhuru poured praises on Raila, something that was not received well by Ruto faction in Jubilee.
Those in the know claim that those who have been approached to reconcile the two chickens out only to avoid the task. Insiders say that Uhuru is bitter that his deputy is running a parallel government and at one time, he referred to the president as a drunkard. To complicate matters is the fear that Ruto and his allies are undermining his development goals and portraying him a lame duck presidency.
Since the handshake, Uhuru and Ruto have found themselves embroiled in a cold war as internal conflicts rock the governing Jubilee Party.
The deputy president’s allies have ramped up direct criticism of the president’s pet projects in his second term — the new anti-corruption drive and the ‘building bridges’ initiative.
The president’s men, in turn, are clearly unhappy that his quest to craft is a legacy that is being undermined by premature 2022 campaigns.
When Uhuru launched a fresh war against corruption, MPs in Ruto’s camp openly voiced suspicion that it was targeting the DP’s allies.
Weekly Citizen has further established that Ruto may be forced to downscale widely talked weekly financial support to the Tanga Tanga team attack dogs after Uhuru successfully sealed his major financial loopholes.
In an expose of behind the scene happenings in Uhuru-Ruto feud, State House has resolved on a raft of measures to neutralise Ruto and completely render him irrelevant by 2022 with his presidency classified as dangerous.
Weekly Citizen has established that State House inner circles have made unofficial communication putting in high alert all state corporations not to take Ruto’s instructions however good they may appear and every communication from him be shared with Interior CS Fred Matiang’i and PS Karanja Kibicho.
Matiang’i and Kibicho in their latest role to watch on Ruto without blinking an eye have ensured that all major contracts suspected to have been inflated by the deputy president and some of his allies be immediately stopped for a review.
A highly placed source familiar with the happenings said the pending inflated contracts will not be paid and the information seems to have rattled Ruto whose tribe man Treasury CS Henry Rotich has been reduced to a ceremonial figure at the prestigious ministry from the moment he was implicated in Sh21 billion Arror and Kimwarer dam’s scandal.
There is no way Rotich can authoritatively stamp influence on the payment of such contracts since he had lost his rights on funds movement to PS Kamau Thugge, an ally of Uhuru.
Relatively, Uhuru after a series of high level consultations with state intelligence, family members and top pro-government Kikuyu businessmen, made up his mind to starve his deputy in a move viewed to be more tactical than firing him.
This is intended to keep the DP in drained and make him face logistical difficulties in planning and executing his weekend activities which has been labeled platforms for venom spewing platform against the handshake deal.
However, a few in the Tanga Tanga team with leaked information on why their weekly financial handouts could be drastically scaled down are already out with blazing guns and pointing accusing figures at Matiang’i and Kibicho.
Notable faces in the Tanga Tanga team are said to be in panic mode after some of their prominent members had their security withdrawn for what appeared to be unspecified reasons.
This coupled with the imminent arrest of one of the Tanga Tanga ringleaders Kapseret MP Oscar Sudi over hate speech and previous ban on CSs from attending weekend social functions have rendered Tanga Tanga team hopeless despite their brave faces seen in the public.
Notably, two cabinet secretaries allied to Ruto are likely to be arrested any time over Kimwarer and Arror dams and this is expected to pave way for a climaxed trade of war of tirades between Tanga Tanga team and Kieleweke that is attempting to repackage itself to Team Kenya after Ruto started calling it Kisioeleweka and which is associated with Uhuru and Raila.
Uhuru who has engaged in silence in the war has partly pushed his deputy to a defensive position.
According to a pundit, the position taken by Raila and Raila to remain mute on frequent attacks by Ruto and allies has not gown down well.
In fact, highly placed sources privy to the relationship between Raila and Uhuru have acknowledged that with the former prime minister on his side, the president is a man who sleeps and wakes up strong since he has an experienced team with tight international links.
The handshake deal instantly boosted Raila’s international image and landed him the prestigious AU job while on the other hand, the deal reduced Ruto to be seen as a nagging individual. The handshake has neutered Raila who now haplessly watches as Kenyans grieve over unbearable living conditions with no opposition to put Uhuru to account.
Following financial and logistical frustration the state has declared on Ruto, the Tanga Tanga squad has now turned their guns on perceived powerful individuals in the government believed to be directly executing president Uhuru’s plans against his deputy. Sudi has kicked off a war to demonise Interior CS Matiang’i and his PS Karanja Kibicho with assertions that the two are facilitating a political scheme to undermine Ruto.
A senate committee probing the Ruaraka land scandal reached recommendations that Matiang’i be investigated for greenlighting the controversial purchase of a 13-acre piece of land despite quality assurance and standards assessment having established that it was a public land.
Other prominent faces in the Tanga Tanga squad leading in campaign against Matiang’i and Kibicho are Kiambu governor Ferdinard Waititu, Kikuyu MP Kimani Ichung’wa, Nakuru Senator Susan Kihika, Bahati MP Kimani Ngunjiri and Malindi MP Aisha Jumwa.
However, unconfirmed reports indicate that the Tanga Tanga attack dogs are of late surviving on a slashed weekly stipend which has been reviewed to Sh50,000 up from Sh100,000 during the early days of now full blown war between Uhuru and Ruto.