Head of Presidential Special Projects & Creative Economy, Dennis Itumbi, has responded to a statement made by Deputy President (DP) Rigathi Gachagua that he was removed from a State House WhatsApp group used to share the President William Ruto schedule.
Speaking on Friday, September 20, Gachagua explained that updates on Ruto’s schedule are shared in a WhatsApp group, which is why he had been missing some of the president’s events.
“It is a WhatsApp group, and it is updated as you go on and the president updates it sometimes himself and we all keep on aligning,” he elaborated.
The DP said that he now only attends presidential functions to which he is explicitly invited because he no longer has access to Ruto’s schedule.
“Previously, I had access to President Ruto’s diary. It becomes very difficult for me to work on my diary because I do not know what the President has. There is a mischief to remove me from the diary, from the page where the diary is so that once I don’t attend presidential events it can be purported that I am absconding duty,” Gachagua said.
In his response, Itumbi confirmed that State House had a WhatsApp group, but it was deleted, and everyone, including President Ruto, was removed.
He explained that the decision to delete the group was made to stop the sharing of important documents via WhatsApp. No new group has since been formed, according to Itumbi.
“What DP Gachagua fails to mention is that the President was removed even before him, and the group was permanently deleted due to the highly classified documents being shared in WhatsApp groups. A security decision was also made that no other group would be formed on the Diary 2,” Itumbi said.
Itumbi Clarifies Kings Charles Visit Meme
Itumbi also addressed a meme created during King Charles III’s visit to Kenya, accusing the DP of drawing attention to artwork that had been developed by those against the UDA at the time for social media banter.
He stated that Gachagua accused Kiharu MP Ndindi Nyoro of creating the meme, and President Ruto was forced to cancel a crucial Universal Health Coverage meeting for a two-hour session to discuss its political impact.
“He accused Ndindi and me of demeaning him, even taking offense at Ndindi for hosting development sessions in Kiharu, the same benchmarking he once participated in as Mathira MP,” Itumbi said.
Also Read: Kimani Ichungw’ah Narrates How Gachagua Physically Assaulted Itumbi
Gachagua Message to Ruto
In his interview on Friday, Gachagua said that the Office of the Deputy President has been facing an onslaught from politicians allied to the president. He recalled a similar scenario when allies of former President Uhuru Kenyatta frustrated Ruto during the Jubilee administration.
The DP urged President Ruto to fulfill the promise he made during the 2022 campaign, that he would not allow his deputy to be demeaned if he won the election.
Gachagua also alleged that Cabinet Secretaries (CSs), state officials, and other elected leaders have been disrespecting him, and that the president has remained silent on the matter.
“President Ruto gave a promise when he was complaining about the way he was prosecuted, demeaned, mistreated, and harassed. He committed that under his watch if they elect him as President, his deputy would not be diminished, harassed, disrespected or prosecuted,” he said.
Also Read: Ruto to Jet Out for Another International Assignment
Impeachment Plans
The DP also claimed that some elected leaders were being bribed and coerced into supporting efforts to impeach him.
He disclosed that secret night meetings had been held in Nyahururu and Kitisuru, at the home of a Cabinet Secretary, to discuss his removal from office.
“Meetings have been held in Nyahururu, meetings were also held in Kitisuru in the house of a CS, we know what was being discussed. We know the amount of money that exchanged hands. We know these things,” he said.
Additionally, Gachagua called on the president to restore order within his government and put an end to early political campaigns and intimidation against his office, allowing leaders to focus on serving the Kenyan people.
Uhuru as Mt.Kenya Leader
Regarding the ongoing leadership contest in the Mt. Kenya region, Gachagua appeared to shut down the debate over the region’s leadership, declaring former President Uhuru Kenyatta as the undisputed kingpin of the vote-rich region.
“I owed Uhuru an apology, on behalf of the community. Because what he had told us is what the President has told us, we had no business fighting, disrespecting and humiliating him. Uhuru Kenyatta is the undisputed king of the mountain,” he said.
Follow our WhatsApp Channel for real-time news updates!
https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaB3k54HltYFiQ1f2i2C
