Rarieda Member of Parliament (MP) Otiende Amollo has dismissed Deputy president Rigathi Gachagua’s apology to Mama Nginga Kenyatta, terming it insincere.
Speaking during an interview with KTN on Tuesday March 26, 2024 the Rarieda MP claimed that Gachagua was using the apology to gain support from his Mt Kenya region.
“I think it’s a result of the things that are happening in Mt. Kenya region. There is some disquiet that is building, there are those that are contending to replace him from his seat and that is public knowledge,” Amollo told KTN.
“He needs all the friends that he can gather and that includes Uhuru Kenyatta, the much the better for him,” he added.
The Rarieda MP added that Gachagua has lost popularity in the Mt Kenya region as other politicians seek to take over as the region’s kingpin.
He explained that the deputy president was losing popularity due to the Kenya Kwanza government’s introduction of heavy taxation that has overburdened citizens with more taxes.
According to Otiende, the taxation reforms introduced by the Kenya Kwanza government were haunting President William Ruto’s regime.
“There is disquiet over the actions that have been taken first in terms of over-taxation because they have realised it is extremely harmful to many business people and ordinary citizens in Mt. Kenya,” he said.
His remarks came a day after Gachagua apologized to Kenya’s former First Lady Mama Ngina Kenyatta over the insults directed at her during campaigns in 2022.
“I am sorry for involving Mama Ngina Kenyatta in the last general elections politics. She is our mother. I therefore ask for forgiveness on behalf of our team for any inconvenience caused to her. I will never allow anyone to demean her or anyone from the region,” Gachagua told Kameme TV.
“The former President Uhuru Kenyatta is our son. We worked together for 17 years and only disagreed for 2 years and now that’s the past. I pray for him in his retirement. Uhuru is one of us. We shall talk with everyone,” he added.
Shortly after the August 2022 elections, Gachagua took on Mama Ngina in a political battle during political rallies.
For instance, during a public event in Nyeri County, he had asked Mama Ngina to surrender half of the Kenyatta land to the Mau Mau and their children, claiming that the land was grabbed from its rightful owners.
