Gachagua funds Malala to tame Mudavadi in Luhyaland – Weekly Citizen

Details have emerged how Rigathi Gachagua has engaged former Kakamega senator Cleophas Malala to neutralise prime cabinet secretary Musalia Mudavadi’s influence in Western region as the DP attempts to consolidate his power ahead of 2027 general elections.

Sources close to Malala confided in Weekly Citizen how Gachagua is currently bankrolling the vocal politician whose ambition is to eclipse his political seniors and become the next Luhya kingpin.

According to sources, the newfound political relationship between Malala and Gachagua is what has led to the return of the famous Cleo Malala Super Cup that has increased its coverage to include a total of five counties from the Western region.

The tournament was initially restricted to Kakamega county.

Just like the political scenario in Mt Kenya where Gachagua is recruiting Azimio politicians to fight his wars, in Western region, the DP believes that Malala is the best person to push for his interest as he forms a team of his own loyalists.

Seemingly, the DP does not trust Mt Kenya politicians perceived to have been groomed by William Ruto in UDA and instead, has opted to go for his own new team.

Gachagua recently hosted Mt Kenya MPs at his Harambee Annex office.

The meeting that was dominated by political undertones was disguised as an event to discuss issues touching on development in the respective areas of representation and working together irrespective of political affiliations.

Key Jubilee lawmakers in the meeting were nominated MP Sabina Chege and the party’s director of elections and East and African Legislative Assembly MP Kanini Kega.

The meeting was also attended by MPs David Kiaraho (Ol Kalou), Irene Njoki (Bahati), Zachary Kwenya (Kinangop), Shadrack Mwiti (Imenti South), Mark Mwenje (Embakasi West), Amos Mwago (Starehe), Dan Karitho (Igembe Central), Stanley Muthama (Lamu West) and Joseph Githuku (Lamu).

Sources told Weekly Citizen that Gachagua has turned into a generous individual willing to splash money on anyone committed to play on his political wing.

A reliable individual within Malala’s team confessed to Weekly Citizen that it is the same money that the former senator is enjoying to crisscross Western region with a hidden agenda to undermine Mudavadi but disguised as uniting the region.

Weekly Citizen has established that it is the dealings between Malala and Gachagua that has prompted president William Ruto to offer the senator state job while rewarding allies.

Ruto is reportedly not amused with the development given his open preference for Mudavadi.

According to political analyst Mutahi Ngunyi, Ruto is likely to settle on Mudavadi as his running mate during his 2027 reelection bid.

This is seemingly the reality that has hit Gachagua hard and now desperately working on his possible plan B should the president abandon him.

The bad blood between Gachagua and Mudavadi can be traced back to days before the last general elections when Gachagua acted wild at the prospect of Ruto considering Mudavadi as his running mate.

When Mudavadi’s name was mentioned, Gachagua protested and maintained that Ruto’s running mate was to come from the Mt Kenya region and the deal was already sealed.

Mudavadi

But Ruto would later make Gachagua angrier by assigning Mudavadi more roles that made Mudavadi appear as if he overpowered the DP in the Kenya Kwanza Alliance government.

Among the responsibilities handed to Mudavadi by Ruto include chairing and coordinating national government legislative agenda, assisting the president and deputy president to coordinate, supervise ministries and departments, overseeing the implementation of national government policies, programmes and projects, chairing principal secretaries’ committees, among others.

Under the Executive Order 1 of 2023, Ruto also mandated Mudavadi to oversee a docket namely Government Delivery Services which replaces the Presidential Delivery Unit.

Analysts argue these new roles could enhance political competition between Mudavadi and Gachagua. However, professionals, religious leaders and political leaders from Western region are said to be concerned that Malala is being used to antagonise Mudavadi who is now emerging as the bona fide king of the region.

It is also imperative to note that the outspoken former legislator played a big role in the coalition deal between the then ANC leader Mudavadi and Ruto’s UDA party, leading to the birth of the Kenya Kwanza coalition, only for Malala to abandon Mudavadi at the hour of need.

The former senator chose to keep distance even as Luhya politicians united to repulse Gachagua against Mudavadi in a bitter war of words that erupted between leaders from Western and Mt Kenya regions, occasioned by the raging political supremacy battle between Gachagua and Mudavadi.

The war was triggered by the DP’s move to read a riot act to Nairobi governor Johnson Sakaja over his plans to relocate matatus from the city centre but quickly snowballed into a political duel between leaders from the two regions.

Pundits aver that Ruto being a shrewd politician will eventually offer Malala a job to deflate Gachagua’s influence in Western region.

The idea to offer Malala a job in Kenya Kwanza’s government is also being pushed by Central Organisation of Trade Unions secretary-general Francis Atwoli.

Atwoli asked the president to consider Malala and former CS Rashid Echesa for jobs while lamenting that the two have been disturbing him because they are unemployed.

Echesa

During a meeting of Western leaders with Ruto at Kakamega State Lodge, the firebrand trade unionist said the two have been disturbing him especially when they are hungry.

“We are waiting to hear our sons have got some jobs, people like Cleophas Malala. Rashid is always after me especially when they are broke. I will have peace in this region if they get jobs,’’ Atwoli pointed out, jokingly.

Another interesting story is told how Malala missed a golden opportunity to directly ask for a job from Ruto when they met at State House but instead only fumbled before asking the head of state to instruct the police to go slow on him.

According to sources, speaker of the senate Amason Kingi who witnessed the drama laughed uncontrollably that Malala could not ask for anything meaningful from the president.

Kingi

The former senator believes that he is a target of the police especially after he made controversial remarks on the qualifications of police in the country.

He sparked off a nationwide outrage when he belittled the police service saying their job should be a preserve of people who dropped out of school.

Immediately after the elections, a warrant of arrest was issued against Malala, and police raided his home in an attempt to arrest him over assault against another politician.

This was not the first time Malala was being accused of assault.