A high stakes game that involved President William Ruto and his Deputy Rigathi Gachagua was played at the election of the Council of Governors(COG) with an eye to 2027 elections in the Mt Kenya Region.
The game plan was hatched by Mt Kenya Governors to ensure Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru who has a higher ambition after her term ends in 2027 occupies the seat now and leave a top position close to the election.
In Mombasa, Governors from Azimio La Umoja and a section of those from Kenya Kwanza had opposed Ms Waiguru’s candidature, arguing it was not tenable to have Deputy President, COG Chairman and the CEO of COG come from the same Mt Kenya region, considering that the Outgoing COG Chairman Martin Wambora is from Embu.
As DP, Gachagua from Nyeri County will be chairing the Intergovernmental Budget and Economic Council (IBEC) while the CEO of COG Mary Mwiti is from Meru.
But the need to have Waiguru exit a national position as soon as possible pushed the Kenya Kwanza brigade to prop her.
A Governor from Mt Kenya was quoted in one of the caucuses last night. “We want her to serve and leave before 2024. Some big shots want Rigathi Gachagua to be the only Leader with a national position in 2027.We agreed it was not too much to let Waiguru serve now and Leave.”
On Thursday, DP Gachagua was seen in an animated talk with Waiguru’s opponent Kajiado Governor, Joseph Ole Lenku but it was not clear what they discussed.
The chit chat sparked speculation especially because earlier, Gachagua had told Governors to have “a free hand” to elect their officials without considering “party or Coalition lines.”
The statement was interpreted as a setback for Waiguru and some quarters argued there was an effort to ensure she wasn’t voted over the regional imbalance in the Devolution space.
At tea break, Governors in Kenya Kwanza quietly supporting Lenku’s candidature were seen canvassing in low tones with one from the North Rift saying the pressure from Kenya Kwanza top leadership to “sort Waiguru now for her to leave early” was too much.
Earlier in the evening, Governor Lenku took to his social media handles and congratulated the team that had Wajir’s Ahmed Abdullahi handed the position of Vice Chairman.