Woman Rep Jane Kagiri insists Laikipia is not in Mt Kenya ahead of Ruto’s visit
Laikipia Woman Representative Jane Kagiri has stirred debate over Mt Kenya politics ahead of President William Ruto’s visit to the vote-rich region.
Ruto is set to embark on a highly anticipated tour of Mt Kenya from April 1 to April 5, 2025—a visit that has heightened political tensions and fueled speculation about his standing in the region.
Despite overwhelmingly supporting Ruto in the 2022 election, Mt Kenya has grown increasingly disillusioned with his leadership, particularly following the impeachment of former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua.
However, Kagiri, a staunch Ruto ally, has dismissed claims that the region is hostile to the president.
Speaking during a TV interview on Monday, March 31, 2025, Kagiri argued that much of the talk surrounding Mt Kenya’s political landscape after Gachagua’s impeachment is misleading.
“It’s good for us to tell each other the truth that a lot has been said about Mt Kenya. So initially, first we were told that it’s not going to be possible for any leader who is elected in Mt Kenya to go back to the ground. The ground literally means our constituencies or our counties. That happened, we went back and we engaged our people. Then again it was said the president cannot enter Mt Kenya, so here comes our people are excited, they are waiting for the president and so the day has reached,” she said.
Kagiri: Laikipia is not part of Mt Kenya
Kagiri also challenged the notion that Laikipia County is part of Mt Kenya, arguing that it is politically grouped with the region only when it is convenient.
“But allow me to also correct that Laikipia is not in Mt Kenya. Laikipia is in Rift Valley if we all remember our geography. What happens, and I have refused my people to be misled when elections are near or when votes have counted and when anybody is under siege and believes they need votes, they rush and call Laikipia Mt Kenya. The minute that is done we are thrown back to Rift Valley and told to go look for development there. And that is why even when you come to the equalization fund, Laikipia features as one of the beneficiaries of historical injustices,” she explained.
Comparing Laikipia and Nyeri’s economic realities
Kagiri further contrasted Laikipia’s economic situation with that of Nyeri County, which is geographically within Mt Kenya.
“I go to Nyeri because that’s where my parents’ roots are. Any time I visit my grandmother’s place if I would want to step on mud the choice would be within my grandmother’s compound because the minute you get to her gate tarmac starts there. When I was in class 6 and we would go to my grandmother’s place to help her collect coffee over the holidays, my grandmother would be cooking with firewood down here but up there she has a bulb, which is black from the soot from the firewood. That means those are years my grandmother was able to get electricity. Again you look at water, we have never ever fetched water from a river at my grandmother’s place because there was a tap right outside her kitchen,” she said.
In contrast, she described the challenges in Laikipia:
“Today I go back to my county of Laikipia, my people still have to walk 17 km to get water. I look at my county of Laikipia out of 100 percent of the household only 20 per cent are connected to electricity. I look at the situation of tarmac – in 3000 km of roads in Laikipia county, less than 900 km are covered by tarmac. That tells you that is even less than 30 per cent,” she lamented.
Why Kagiri remained loyal to Ruto
Kagiri also defended her decision to stay in Ruto’s government instead of following Gachagua into the opposition, arguing that Laikipia would suffer without government support.
“When it came to the impeachment time, to most Kenyans they thought it was an issue of an individual. But beyond that, it was a question of ‘do you want to remain in government or do you want to exit government?’. Those were the two clear questions on that day,” she said.
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Martin Oduor
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