Gachagua, Kalonzo to storm Kibwezi West in face-off with Mutuse

Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua and Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka will on Friday, June 6, 2025, hold a series of rallies in Kibwezi West Constituency.

Kibwezi West is represented in the National Assembly by Chap Chap MP Mwengi Mutuse, the youthful lawyer who moved the impeachment motion against Gachagua last year.

This will be the first time Gachagua visits the constituency of the man who tabled the motion that ultimately led to his removal from office, ending his tenure as the country’s second in command.

On Thursday, June 5, 2025, Mutuse urged Gachagua to respect the people of Kibwezi West during his visit to the region.

“I am aware that tomorrow (Friday), the man we sent home will be in Kibwezi, but I want to ask them to behave respectfully and avoid insults,” Mutuse said.

Speaking during an empowerment drive in Kitui East, Mutuse emphasised that the rallies should not be turned into platforms for attacking other leaders.

“As you have seen, we have not insulted anyone here. We also expect them to avoid undermining other leaders,” he added.

The Friday tour by Gachagua and Kalonzo is viewed as part of a growing pushback against President William Ruto, who is currently working closely with Mutuse and his former party boss, Labour Cabinet Secretary Alfred Mutua.

Mutua, a long-standing political rival of Kalonzo, has previously used his Maendeleo Chap Chap party to assert influence in the Ukambani region.

The Kibwezi West visit comes just days after Kalonzo hosted a group of key opposition figures—including Gachagua—at his Tseikuru residence in Kitui County on May 29, 2025.

The high-profile gathering, the first of its kind at Kalonzo’s rural home in years, marked the beginning of an intense battle for the Ukambani vote ahead of the 2027 general election.

Each major opposition leader is under mounting pressure to consolidate their political base to strengthen their bargaining power in ongoing negotiations over who will fly the coalition’s presidential flag.

Gachagua has previously challenged Kalonzo to deliver at least four million Ukambani votes to the opposition as a precondition for securing Mount Kenya’s support.

Speaking at a rally in Matuu, Machakos County, on Friday, May 30, 2025, Gachagua declared that the Ukambani region remained firmly aligned with Kalonzo, praising the former Vice President’s influence and the region’s political unity.

“Today, I am a very happy man. I will sleep peacefully because Kalonzo has a solid base,” Gachagua told the crowd in Matuu.

“Kalonzo is a serious leader, and whenever he gives political direction, his people listen.”

He also used the occasion to urge Ukambani voters to support Wiper candidates exclusively in the upcoming general election.

“In the 2027 elections, elect all leaders in Ukambani from the Wiper party to give Kalonzo a strong base,” he said.

“If you elect leaders from many parties or independents, you will weaken Kalonzo’s authority at the negotiating table. Give him Wiper MPs only.”

Gachagua and Kalonzo have since emerged as central figures in a growing coalition of opposition leaders.

This alliance—which includes other political heavyweights such as DAP-K party leader Eugene Wamalwa—seeks to challenge President Ruto’s administration and present a unified front in the 2027 general election.