Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has refuted assertions of engaging in double-speak over the raging topic of police brutality.
Speaking to Meru media stations on Friday, June 20, 2025, Gachagua denied contradicting his earlier statements made at the height of the anti-government protests that greeted Kenya Kwanza’s ascension to power.
Anti-govt demos
Social media has recently been awash with videos of Gachagua, then serving as the DP, warning demonstrators that they will be met with the full force of the law.
In his defense, the politician has adamantly refuted advocating for police meting out violence against citizens.
“I said police must do their work according to the law. I never said they should kill people. I said they should use reasonable force. That was my stance, but when the police started killing civilians, that’s when we disagreed with Ruto. It was on June 26. I was serving as the deputy president, and I held a press conference condemning the killing of our young people,” he clarified.
Further, Gachagua challenged Ruto to fire Deputy Inspector General of Police Eliud Lagat, drawing comparisons to the way the former Director of Criminal Investigations (DCI), George Kinoti, was pushed out of office under Ruto’s administration.
“This thing of saying Lagat has stepped aside is a joke. It is a game, and the President knows it,” Gachagua said.
“When it was Kinoti, there was no stepping aside. He was removed without ceremony. Why is Lagat being treated with kid gloves?”
DIG Lagat is currently under investigation following the death of blogger and teacher Albert Ojwang’, who died on June 8, 2025, while in police custody at the Central Police Station in Nairobi.
A postmortem revealed that Ojwang’ had been assaulted and strangled, sparking public outrage and international condemnation.
Eyeing the Rift Valley
With the tables having turned upon his impeachment, the former DP has on more than one occasion found himself in collision with the law enforcers while popularising his new outfit, the Democracy for Citizens Party (DCP).
Gachagua insists that he will not be stopped as he looks to make forays onto the president’s home turf to sell his party’s agenda.
”I will go to Rift Valley too. I want to remind Ruto that when you fell out with Uhuru Kenyatta, he never barred you from stepping on Mt. Kenya. You used to camp there every day. So let me also go and sell my party to the people there,” he said.
He has further urged Ruto to emulate his predecessor, who never resorted to violence when the pair fell out.
“The president now doesn’t want me to get out of the mountain. But I intend to go to Rift Valley; if he so wishes to stop or injure me, let it be. He is putting up the police to block us. He should be a gentleman and allow me to also sell my manifesto to the people there,” he said.
