Mudavadi rebukes Gachagua’s cousins rhetoric
Prime Cabinet Secretary and Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi has dismissed former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua’s “cousins” remark as divisive, urging political leaders to abandon ethnic-based formations and instead focus on policies that can grow the country.
Speaking during an interview on a local media station on July 13, 2025, Mudavadi expressed that Gachagua’s camp is misguided and in need of self-reflection for promoting what he describes as tribal alliances disguised as kinship.
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“So the ones who are calling themselves cousins and trying to create an agenda are lost. They need to have their Damascus moment. In my view, they need to reflect,” Mudavadi stated.
The Prime Cabinet Secretary insisted that the future of Kenya cannot be built on tribal alliances, but on sound policies and decisions aimed at economic growth and national cohesion.
“We are not about creating ethnic arrangements. Let us work on matters of policy and matters of growing this country,” he stated.
Focus on development, not elections
Mudavadi warned that Kenya’s development is being derailed by politicians who prioritise elections over service delivery and meaningful reforms.
“The actions, the decisions, the angle we take should not be about an election. It should be about making Kenya better,” he said.
According to the Prime CS, delays in making critical, transformative decisions—due to political convenience—are fuelling frustration among the youth and contributing to recent nationwide protests.
“The problem we are facing is that whenever anybody tries to do anything and focuses on the basis of just purely election, we are delaying the progress of Kenyans. And these are some of the reasons that are bringing young men and women to the streets,” Mudavadi observed.
He emphasised that the responsibility to build Kenya lies with all its citizens.
“At the end of the day, there’s nobody who will protect Kenya, grow Kenya better than Kenyans themselves. It’s a clarion call. Nobody,” he stated.
Backlash grows over ‘cousins’ remark
Mudavadi joins a growing list of government-affiliated leaders who have condemned Gachagua’s comments that labelled some communities as “cousins” of Mt Kenya.
In a statement shared on his social media platforms on June 17, 2025, Labour and Social Protection Cabinet Secretary Alfred Mutua publicly opposed the label, calling it political gaslighting aimed at pacifying and exploiting marginalised communities.
“Calling us cousins is an insult!” The Kamba have always been in-laws with our Mt Kenya neighbours, NOT cousins. This mislabeling is a calculated strategy to pacify and exploit us. It’s time we rise, define our agenda, and take our rightful place at the decision-making table,” Mutua stated.
In a previous address on June 16, 2025, Mutua stated that such language not only distorts cultural identity but also seeks to undermine political agency.
“We know who our cousins are. And you, Gachagua, are not our cousin,” Mutua said firmly. Mt. Kenya people are not cousins; they are in-laws. That’s our tradition. Don’t mock us,” he stated.
South Mugirango MP Silvanus Osoro echoed similar sentiments during a rally at the Coast on July 6, 2025, warning coastal communities not to fall for deceptive ethnic alliances.
“They once said that the Coast region doesn’t count—that you don’t have enough ‘shares.’ Now they’ve come back and started calling you cousins,” Osoro stated.
“When I look at their faces and then look at you here—beautiful women, handsome men—I don’t see anyone who resembles that gentleman. That man is not your cousin, please. No, no, no. Look properly—does he look like you? Let’s be honest—could that man be your cousin? Could he?” he posed.
