Political calculations behind Gachagua’s move to mend ties with Kenyatta’s
They claim that there are no permanent foes in politics. As a result, no one should be shocked that Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua is repairing his connection with the Kenyatta family, whom many believe the DP-led Kenya Kwanza treated with disrespect prior to and following the 2022 general elections. So, is Gachagua playing it safe or politically strategic?
In Gikuyu, such a strategic stronghold is known as ‘hutia ngoige’ (touch me and I’ll say it). This folkloric stronghold concept has several variations, interpretations, and applications.
For example, if someone knows your dark secret, they can use it to manipulate and control you by threatening to expose you if you do not comply with their demands; this person is known as ‘hutia ngoige’.
In politics, there is always a backup plan. Most politicians survive using this fortress technique.
For example, William Ruto was aware that he had a majority of Jubilee parliamentarians in the previous government. So, according to the tale, he could challenge Uhuru not to toy with him, or he would split the party, destroy him, and paralyse government operations.
Gachagua, unlike Ruto, requires a solid back-up plan. Politically, it is a necessary evil. Otherwise, deputy presidents are vulnerable, exposed, and essentially expendable.
Given the limited experience we have gained from Ruto and Uhuru’s relationship, as well as a predictable turn of events given the DP’s current position, the second in command must learn to be amorphous and formless in order to survive.
Two explanations may explain why DPs require backup plans. First, there is presidential concern. Normally, from a Machiavellian perspective, the President understands that the deputy is his/her successor.
No one loves the concept of having a spare person waiting to come in at any time. Only in football or in paternal inheritance order may such posture be accepted.
Furthermore, the unconscious ambition of every DP is to inherit power in the manner of Daniel Arap Moi or Tanzania’s Samia Suluhu.
No president will ever have a sweet hunger for such Oedipus tendencies. Why is the power obtained in this order significant? If Jomo Kenyatta had survived to succeed his vice president, Moi would have died like his predecessors, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga and Joseph Murumbi.
As a result, any DP has the potential to become president if given the opportunity. That is why whoever becomes president must view their deputies with distrust, and the deputies can only ignore this truth at their own risk.
The second category is strategic rivalry. Deputies are frequently mismanaged by people close to the President; this has been the case since independence. Many interested parties want to be’second-in-command’, albeit surreptitiously.
These politicians surround the President with symbols of trust, foresight, and think tanks, while ghettoising the deputy. They may even deny the deputy access to the President.
They try to persuade the President that the deputy deserves to be subdued because he believes he is equal to the President. In this vulnerable position, the deputy’s only option is to turn to his opponents. Even Presidents can find themselves in this situation.
For example, during Uhuru’s reign, the President felt the heat and relied on Raila Odinga and the opposition to restrain his deputy, who was becoming increasingly ambitious. In his 48 Laws of Power, Robert Greene states that “Enemies can be more useful than friends when you can co-opt them.”
Gachagua has the privilege of pulling the stunt under Kenya’s Kwanza administration. This is because, politically, Ruto has numerous possibilities and replacements for Gachagua, whereas the DP may not have many options for replacing Ruto.
As a result, Gachagua and his Mount Kenya constituency benefit from the Kenyatta family’s influence. He is developing a ‘hutia ngoige’ chokehold that he would employ to check and balance his relationship with the President should things start to go wrong.
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Political calculations behind Gachagua’s move to mend ties with Kenyatta’s
