‘If Gachagua convinces me his party will deliver what I’m searching for, I can be at liberty to resolve’ – Gathoni Wamuchomba
Thursday thirteenth February, 2025 08:45 AM|
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Githunguri Constituency Member of Parliament, Peninah Gathoni Wa Muchomba, has hinted at the potential of becoming a member of former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua’s extremely anticipated political occasion if it aligns together with her rules and expectations.
As speculation continues to swirl around Gachagua’s upcoming political formation, Gathoni made it clear that she stays open to shifting alliances ought to the brand new occasion show to be a viable car for her political aspirations.
Speaking throughout an interview with an area TV station through a reside video from Boston on Wednesday, February 12, 2025, Gathoni addressed rising questions on whether or not she would take into account becoming a member of the brand new occasion anticipated to be unveiled by Gachagua.
While she didn’t outright decide to becoming a member of, she made it clear that she would weigh her choices primarily based on how effectively the occasion aligns together with her imaginative and prescient for the long run.
“I have a different opinion when it comes to Wamunyoro. I will join whoever will come in and encompass my principles and my expectations for the next government. So if he comes in and tells me, ‘I have this political vehicle that is going to deliver whatever it is that I am fighting for,’ I will be at liberty to make my decision. But as of now, I am watching,” she acknowledged.
Gathoni’s remarks come amid ongoing hypothesis a few potential political realignment, significantly inside the Mt Kenya area, the place Gachagua has positioned himself as a key determine.
Discontent with UDA
In the identical interview, Gathoni additionally expressed her deep frustration with UDA, the occasion beneath which she was elected in 2022.
She didn’t maintain again in condemning the occasion for failing to satisfy the guarantees it made to the voters. According to her, UDA has veered off target, betraying its supporters by implementing insurance policies which have harm Kenyans as an alternative of delivering the financial aid they had been promised.
“I was elected under the UDA party. The party that sponsored me in the National Assembly is UDA, so technically, I am still in UDA. But I did not ask President Ruto to go and merge with ANC. And therefore, because there is a merger, we are going to wait and see whether President Ruto is going to gazette it so that we can also declare our positions because we did not give him the mandate to do so,” she acknowledged.
Gathoni went on to make a daring declaration that she wouldn’t search re-election beneath the UDA banner.
She cited a sequence of grievances, together with what she described as oppressive insurance policies, financial mismanagement, and the federal government’s disregard for the struggles of unusual Kenyans.
“I am not going to vie again under UDA, that I must declare. If I ever vie for whatever position I am going to vie for, God willing, I am not going to use UDA because UDA has betrayed me. I did not campaign for President Ruto as my president to abduct and kill my sons and daughters. I did not campaign and endorse my president to invade people’s payslips and force them into serious mandatory deductions,” she asserted.
She additional accused UDA of deceptive the voters by making guarantees it had no intention of maintaining, mentioning the failed pledge of ‘pesa mfukoni’ (cash within the pockets) and the unfulfilled Guaranteed Minimum Returns (GMR) for farmers.
Farmers, she lamented, had been left struggling regardless of assurances that they might be a precedence in UDA’s financial restoration plan.
“UDA came in and told us that we are going to have ‘pesa mfukoni.’ It told us that we would have guaranteed minimum returns. Where did GMR go? Where is it for my coffee and avocado farmers? Therefore, I am declaring that I am done with UDA as long as its matters come with the next election. I am in UDA right now because I am sponsored by the party in the National Assembly, but I am not in agreement with the many policies they have brought forth to suppress the economy and the livelihood of the Kenyan people,” she decried.
Gachagua’s occasion announcement
Gathoni’s remarks come simply three days after former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua introduced that he’ll unveil the title of his newly formed political party, which is fully established and solely awaiting its grand launch in May 2025.
Speaking on Sunday, February 9, 2025, throughout a joint media interview, Gachagua emphasised that his occasion was a direct response to the political considerations of the Mt Kenya area. He acknowledged that the occasion had already been structured and would function the area’s political signature, just like Raila Odinga’s ODM.
“Our party is ready. It is in the showroom, the engine is brand new, the tires are Michelin, and the driver is Gachagua—he won’t steer it off course. People are eager to know the name. The fifth month is when we will make the big reveal. We will begin opening branches, transitioning people from UDA, and firmly rooting them in our new home. We want all other communities to join us—we are offering them seats at the table,” he acknowledged.