Gachagua meets Karua in Kirinyaga. Photo/Newsflash
By Wanderi Kamau
A mega political alliance is in the works after former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua met with Narc-Kenya party leader Martha Karua on Saturday, 25 January, 2025 at Kimunye village in Karua’s Kirinyaga County.
Gachagua and Karua have been fierce political nemesis for long.
The meeting, seen as a ‘handshake’ between the two political leaders, comes a few days before Gachagua announces a new ‘political direction’ to the Mt Kenya region towards the 2027 elections.
At the rare meeting- cum- traditional ceremony, Gachagua presented several sheep to Karua. Among the Agikuyu, a sheep is seen as a sign of reconciliation between two feuding parties.
Both Gachagua and Karua were accompanied by several elders who made traditional reconciliatory remarks, signaling the end of a long political ‘beef’ between the two.
“Among the Agikuyu, when a man visits a woman and a leader, he presents her with an ewe. (mwati). The ewe is brought so that the woman’s home can have blessings,” said one of the elders.
On his side, Gachagua said: “I have brought this ewe to the home of our community and the country’s matriarch so that the livestock in this home may multiply.”
Karua acknowledged: “I have received this ewe with a grateful heart and I pray for those blessings and our unity.”
Gachagua also presented a ram (ndurume) – which traditionally must accompany an ewe in a reconciliation ritual among the Agikuyu.
He also presented a special sacrificial sheep (ngoima) to be slaughtered and eaten by the elders and the visitors.
As a sign of generosity of the Leriani clan (his late father), Gachagua also presented additional sheep to the residents of Kirinyaga.
Following the reconciliation ritual, political observers believe that the two will soon announce a big political vehicle (party), which could determine the next political direction for Mt Kenya region, after the fallout between Gachagua and President William Ruto.
“It is evident that Gachagua is not taking chances. Reaching out to Karua is a sign that he is very serious in mending fences with everyone they had a tiff in the past. It is a sign that he is consulting widely before announcing the new ‘political direction’ for the Mountain,” Gicheha Waithaka, a political analyst, tells Newsflash.
Gachagua is linked with former Mwai Kibaki’s Democratic Party (DP), which is being headed by the embattled Public Service Cabinet Secretary Justin Muturi.
According to insiders in Kenya Kwanza, Muturi has read the political signs in Mt Kenya and it is only a matter of days before he hangs his boots and calls it quits.
