Gachagua vows to keep reminding Ruto about 2007 post-election violence
Days after Kenya Kwanza politicians placed him under sharp criticism for issuing a warning about the potential return of election-related violence in 2027, former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has vowed that he will not be silenced from reminding President William Ruto of the brutal legacy of the 2007 post-election bloodshed.
Speaking during a church service at Christ’s Joy Christian Church in Gatanga, Murang’a County, on Sunday, May 18, 2025, Gachagua stated that the memories of the 2007 violence had nearly faded from his mind, but they came rushing back after hired goons were sent to disrupt a church service he was attending in Mwiki, which he said bore chilling resemblance to the horrors of the Kiambaa church massacre.
According to Gachagua, Ruto played a central role in the chaos that erupted following the disputed 2007 presidential election results, and he [Gachagua] would continue to remind the president of that gruesome chapter to ensure that the country never finds itself in a similar crisis again.
“What has unsettled them, and why they are shouting at me, is because they do not want us to remind the public about what happened in Kiambaa Church during the 2007 post-election violence. We forgave President Ruto, but we have not forgotten. You burnt our children inside a church, and we know that is why you are uncomfortable. We had nearly moved on, but when you sent people to PCEA Mwiki Church in Kasarani to cause chaos and attempt to harm us inside God’s house, everything came flooding back,” Gachagua stated.
He went on to warn Ruto that the conversation about 2007 will only subside when he stops sending political gangs to churches and funerals, saying that such sacred spaces must never be used as platforms for intimidation or political interference.
Gachagua argued that the recent wave of violent disruptions at public events, including the appearance of armed thugs during the launch of his new political party in Nairobi, has only served to reopen the painful wounds of 2007, and he insisted that if those attacks come to an end, then those invoking the past will also ease their tone.
“We have seen such violence before, and it can happen again if we are not careful. What we witnessed reminded us of the Kiambaa incident, so President Ruto, if you truly want us to stop talking about Kiambaa, then you must stop sending thugs to churches and funerals to create chaos. The things you are doing now are only making the memories of what happened in that church even more vivid,” he warned.
Civic duty to speak
Gachagua also addressed the criticism that followed his remarks on Oga Obinna’s show, where he stated that if the 2027 elections are rigged, violence could erupt.
Responding to the backlash, he clarified that he had spoken out as part of his civic responsibility as a national leader and not to incite or encourage any form of unrest.
“What we are saying is that we have a civic duty as leaders to speak up whenever we sense a situation that could destabilise the country. That does not mean that we are encouraging people to fight,” he explained.
He went on to clarify that he was merely making a reasonable prediction that should the Kenya Kwanza administration rig the 2027 elections, there could be violent resistance from the public, just as has been witnessed in past situations where democratic processes were undermined.
Gachagua reinforced his point by referencing a similar warning he had issued while serving as Deputy President, when he cautioned that widespread protests would erupt if Parliament went ahead with the controversial 2024 Finance Bill, which many believed was being pushed through for selfish political gain.
He stated that he had warned both President Ruto and Cabinet members about the risks of ignoring public sentiment, and that when his warnings were dismissed, the protests erupted with ferocity, which proved that his concerns had been valid and justified.
“I said this Finance Bill would bring chaos. I told Parliament that these Generation Z youths would never accept it, and it came to pass. There was unrest, there was violence, and there was disorder. I had warned the President and the Cabinet, but they refused to listen. The protests broke out, and they were worse than they had imagined,” Gachagua recalled.
