Why DP Gachagua is on an apology tour to Uhuru Kenyatta, Mama Ngina

They say in politics, there are no permanent enemies, and no permanent friends, only permanent interests. This seesaw swings every day, and it is shocking the manner in which it continues to sweep many in its wake.

The first senior politician to have publicly apologized for hurting others while in power was the late former president Daniel Moi.

In his speech during the Jamhuri Day celebration in 2002, over 20 years ago, he sought forgiveness from those he had hurt during his reign as well as forgave those who had hurt him.

In 2015, Uhuru Kenyatta, then the President, offered an apology to Kenyans for atrocities committed against them by past administrations including massacres, post elections violence and the Moi-era torture chambers.

Uhuru again apologized for police enforcement excesses during the Covid-19 period. In the lead up to the elections, raw and hot words had been exchanged among the protagonists within the two leading camps; President William Ruto emerged winner of the hotly-contested general election.

When President Ruto eventually publicly engaged the Central Organization of Trade Unions (COTU) supremo Francis Atwoli, apologies poured forth, most probably for expediency purposes.

In July 2022, the then Kenya Kwanza running mate and now Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua revealed during a media interview that he had been humiliated and suffered for refusing to abandon Ruto.

He said this resulted in bitterness as witnessed in September 2022, when Gachagua was harsh in his inaugural speech as he accused the outgoing President Uhuru Kenyatta of handing over power at a time when the economy was plummeting and risked collapsing.

"I want to tell the people of Kenya that today is a great day. Kenya is now a democratic country. It became a crime to be a friend of William Ruto, you are finally free," Gachagua stated then.

In February 2023, Gachagua sustained the attack against Uhuru, accusing him of meddling with the affairs of their new administration by allegedly sponsoring street demos against the high cost of living which were led by opposition chief Raila Odinga.

Indeed, he insinuated that Kenya was in a big mess because of Uhuru’s leadership, and he went ahead to caution him to desist from talking about the affairs in the country and calling the current government to account.

Gachagua then told Uhuru that “you have no business telling us what to do!” He went further to say some people were claiming the Kenya Kwanza administration were not working yet they “tampered with the economy of the country, looted Kenya’s wealth, and took money out of our economy...” in a loose reference to Uhuru.

By July 2023, tempers were still frayed as the government withdrew former First Lady Mama Ngina Kenyatta's security from her homes. Mama Ngina had her security officers from the General Service Unit and Administration Police withdrawn without reference to her or any prior notice.

This did not go down well with many observers who felt the former First Lady was a victim of the fight between the new administration and his son, Uhuru. Within the same month, Uhuru’s son Jomo had his home in Karen raided by the police ostensibly to seize his guns. There ensued a standoff and Uhuru personally led a group in defense of his son at his home. The case took a legal turn but the matter was eventually settled out of court.

It was therefore a bit surprising when Gachagua proffered a public and candid apology to Mama Ngina Kenyatta for dragging her name into the political feud against her son, the immediate former retired President of Kenya, Uhuru. It did not end there, he has over the past few weeks consistently and publicly sought to mend fences with Uhuru who he now calls “our king.”

DP Gachagua said the entire Mt. Kenya region and himself were misled into demeaning Uhuru and that this “mistake should never happen again.” In the DP’s own words at a rally in Kimende, Kiambu County; “Come rain come sunshine, we will never again vilify our king. We came here and vilified Uhuru Kenyatta. I repented after that. Did I not repent? Did you forgive me? We will never again vilify the king of the Kikuyu community. Let us teach our youth never again to be used by anyone to vilify our king. Let us love each other so that we get our rightful share of the Kenyan cake.”

The bone of contention had been Uhuru’s choice of the opposition team, Azimio coalition, during the last general election, over the Kenya Kwanza alliance fronted by Ruto and Gachagua.

Since March 2024, Gachagua took off with a bold political move that could see him perched high up the pecking order in Mt. Kenya; he has definitely set his eyes on the heart and soul of the region.

DP Gachagua said, "In 2022, politics had deteriorated to a deplorable state. There was a regrettable lack of respect, with insults being hurled at Mama Ngina, and I'm very sorry for that. We humbly request her forgiveness.”

During a recent media interview, the DP reiterated that the invasion of their private farm on March 2023, and the consequent defamation of Uhuru and his wider family, were misguided and a shame to the community.

He now wants all that was ever said, insinuated and done to the Kenyattas, forgiven. The Kenyattas still hold sway over the mountain and DP Gachagua has come to note that he cannot appease the mountain minus the influence of the Kenyatta family.

On the other hand, a cold fight has broken out in Kenya Kwanza, with accusations flying left and right, it would only make sense that his home region be accommodating and sympathetic.

A genuine and heartfelt apology is a balm to open wounds in the heart caused by vile bile spewed from without. In Kenyan politics, there is plenty of such and indeed as a politician one must have thick skin to chart the murky waters and endure the mudslinging.

A genuine apology is supported by action to rectify the wrong done before. Apology is the mark of maturity and looking at the bigger picture and not just parochial interests.

On the other hand, an apology in Kenya could be political rhetoric to appear to be on the right side of events as political tectonic plates shift. This was put to use aptly by the late former president Moi, a self-confessed professor of politics, who always knew when the tide would shift.

However, when he proffered his apologies for the atrocities committed during his reign, his critics were offended that he made light use of the apology and yet his reign had seen terrible atrocities take place without a process to bring justice to all those affected.

How DP Gachagua intends to use his season of public apologies and reminding his mountain brothers and sisters that they share the same bonds in thick and thin might yet prove to be a political master-stroke or making a comfortable bed to lie on should he find himself isolated from the corridors of power.