President William Ruto on Friday, July4,2025 hosted leaders from Embu County at State House, Nairobi, in a strategic meeting aimed reasserting his grip on the Mount Kenya voting bloc.
The meeting comes just days after Ruto returned from an international tour that included high-level engagements in the United Kingdom and Spain, where he signed a Ksh427 billion Kenya-UK investment deal.
His quick pivot to domestic politics signals urgency in managing growing discontent in the region.
The Embu delegation was led by Governor Cecily Mutitu Mbarire, the UDA national chairperson, whose relationship with some senior party figures,has sparked friction within the ruling alliance.
What began as a subtle power struggle between Mbarire and Kindiki has escalated in recent weeks, with Mbarire accusing unnamed government officials of attempting to sideline her and meddle in Embu affairs.
During the Madaraka Day celebrations on June 1, she openly warned of “officials who pretend to know Embu politics better than us,” threatening to expose those she claimed were plotting her political downfall.
Kindiki, on his part, has in the past criticized Mbarire over perceived lapses in protecting Ruto’s political image in the region.
But the Deputy President sought to downplay those tensions during the National Macadamia Conference held at Embu University on July 4, saying there was “no problem whatsoever.”
Mt Kenya battleground
Ruto’s State House meeting appears calculated to counter the growing influence of former Deputy President
Rigathi Gachagua, who has launched his own political outfit and declared he has “locked out Ruto from the Mountain.” Gachagua, now leading the Democracy for Citizens Party, has vowed to prevent Ruto’s re-entry into Mt Kenya ahead of the 2027 general election.
By engaging Mbarire and other grassroots leaders, Ruto is aiming to repair fractured relations and shore up loyalty in a region that was key to his 2022 victory, but which now threatens to slip away.
While Deputy President Kindiki insists the leadership team is united, the public exchange of barbs and political undertones suggest otherwise.
Whether Friday’s meeting marks a turning point or merely a pause in Mt Kenya’s deepening political realignment remains to be seen.
But one thing is clear: Ruto is back,and he’s working to regain control of his most crucial political base.
