Inside Kioni-Gachagua 'conciliation' plot

The unexpected secret meeting between former Deputy President and Democratic Citizens Party (DCP) leader Rigathi Gachagua and Jubilee Party Deputy Leader in charge of operations and inter-party relations, Jeremiah Kioni, confirmed that the latter had finally accepted there was a new ‘kingpin’ in the Mt Kenya region.

The cultural act of Kioni presenting a ram (ngoima) voluntarily given to atone for or express remorse for an offence or grievance only became public when it was posted on Gachagua’s and Kioni’s social media platforms in the afternoon yesterday.

In Kikuyu culture, Gachagua’s acceptance of Kioni’s ngoima in the presence of witnesses signifies acceptance of the apology and forgiveness by the receiver, the mending of fences, and the opening of a new chapter of cordial relations devoid of recriminations. A rejection would have been an insulting snub, almost equivalent to a curse.

For his part, Gachagua displayed considerable magnanimity by agreeing to receive and host Kioni and his delegation at his home, given Kioni’s past in opposing and deriding anything associated with “Riggy G”.

Among the speculations surrounding the meeting is that it could mark the beginning of ice-breaking overtures ahead of a long-awaited conciliatory “handshake” between Gachagua and retired President Uhuru Kenyatta.

“I am pleased to have received Hon. Jeremiah Kioni, Deputy Party Leader of the Jubilee Party, and former Nyandarua governor Francis Kimemia, who called on me at my Nairobi residence. We engaged on the direction our country is heading and the urgent need to forge unity in liberating our motherland, Kenya. We are all in agreement that our unity is our greatest strength,” Gachagua posted.

The attendance of Kimemia, a former Head of Public Service and powerful Interior principal secretary at the mid-morning Eid ul-Fitr meeting, added to the significance of the emerging rapprochement between Gachagua and senior figures from the political axis of retired President Uhuru Kenyatta in the Mt Kenya region.

The former Ndaragwa MP and immediate former secretary-general of the Jubilee Party has been one of Gachagua’s most vocal critics, and his proximity to the retired president often gave weight to his remarks as reflecting the former Head of State’s position.

Indeed, Kioni only softened his stance after Uhuru publicly urged him last November to stop attacking Gachagua and instead focus on articulating Jubilee party policies.

Until then, Kioni had been among the most persistent voices insisting that Uhuru Kenyatta, not Gachagua, remained the titular political kingpin of the region.

By visiting Gachagua at his private home, accompanied by a senior elder of Kimemia’s stature and offering a symbolic ngoima, Kioni and Kimemia effectively acknowledged Gachagua as the region’s dominant political figure.

Sources familiar with the meeting indicated that Gachagua had initially hesitated to meet Kioni, preferring only to see Kimemia, whom he jokingly accused of “ambushing him without an appointment and in questionable company”.

“This morning, accompanied by H.E. Gov. Francis Kimemia, I held a candid engagement with H.E. Rigathi Gachagua, EGH, where our discussions centred on the pressing national issues facing our country and the urgent need to restore stability, dignity, and economic sanity,” Kioni wrote in his social media post.

What he did not say is that the DCP wave sweeping Nyandarua and the wider Mt Kenya region has created a political climate in which those not seen to be aligned with Gachagua risk being perceived as outsiders or traitors to the “One Term” cause.

The prevailing sentiment is that by impeaching Gachagua, President William Ruto effectively alienated the broader Gema community from his administration.

Kioni has declared his intention to recapture the Ndaragwa parliamentary seat, while Kimemia is also seeking to reclaim the Nyandarua governorship he lost in 2022 after backing the Azimio presidential campaign.