![](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/f473afbf-c323-4bb9-bf10-87ec4f1c8bef.jpeg\")
Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru during the launch of the Sh200 million Mwea Integrated Water Supply Rehabilitation and Expansion Project at Kandongu, Kirinyaga county, on May 11, 2026.\/HANDOUT<\/p>\nKirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru during the launch of the Sh200 million Mwea Integrated Water Supply Rehabilitation and Expansion Project at Kandongu, Kirinyaga county, on May 11, 2026.\/HANDOUT<\/p>\n
Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru has apologised on behalf
\nof Mt Kenya region over the removal of former Deputy President
\nRigathi Gachagua, saying it was a
\nmistake.<\/p>\n
Speaking on
\nMonday, Waiguru acknowledged the political and emotional toll that Gachagua\u2019s impeachment has had on the region and its relationship with the
\nRuto administration.<\/p>\n
\u201cI understand
\nyour pain\u2026 I am truly sorry,\u201d Waiguru said during the launch of the Sh200
\nmillion Mwea integrated water supply rehabilitation and expansion project in
\nKandongu, Kirinyaga county.<\/p>\n
Governor
\nWaiguru said she acknowledges and understands why Kirinyaga residents, whom she
\nwas addressing, feel they are not part of the government, noting they were hurt
\nby what transpired.<\/p>\n
She, however,
\ndistanced herself from the process, insisting the proceedings happened in
\nParliament while she was at the grassroots.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut that pain
\nor anger should not make us
\nseparate ourselves from other communities and end up in problems 20 years from
\nnow. Because there is what I know can be gotten from the government.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can be
\njumping up and down saying what you are saying, but removing a government from
\npower is not easy. They tried with (President
\nMwai) Kibaki and failed, and he was even sworn in at night,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Her remarks
\nreflect an acknowledgment of the growing unease among UDA leaders in Mt Kenya,
\nwhere the political ground has shifted significantly since Gachagua\u2019s
\nimpeachment.<\/p>\n
Once a solid
\npillar of the Kenya Kwanza coalition, the region has shifted its allegiance,
\nwith resentment toward the government hardening into a broader political
\nprotest sustained by Gachagua.<\/p>\n
Still, Waiguru
\nurged the region to rally behind the government to benefit from development.<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you accept
\nto support this government? It is not a love affair. It is about interests.
\nLet\u2019s pay our debt and finish,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Her speech
\ncame after charged remarks by MCAs and county assembly leaders, who were openly
\ndivided at the meeting, with some declaring their support for Gachagua.<\/p>\n
Her remarks
\nalso come just about a month after she declared that she does not have
\n“any problem with Gachagua”.<\/p>\n
Speaking in
\nKirinyaga in April, Waiguru said \u201ceven if things went the way they
\ndid\u201d\u2014alluding to the impeachment\u2014she was among the first DP aspirants to drop
\nher ambitions in his favour in 2022.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t want
\npeople to assume I have a problem with someone because I speak about them. I
\ndon\u2019t have any personal problems with Rigathi Gachagua.\u201d<\/p>\n
Waiguru\u2019s
\napology, though framed as an act of collective leadership responsibility, is
\nwidely seen as an admission of the political damage caused by Gachagua\u2019s
\nremoval to UDA\u2019s popularity in the region.<\/p>\n
She has also
\ntoned down her attacks on the Democracy for
\nCitizens Party leader, who had
\npreviously lashed out at her, accusing the Kirinyaga governor of betrayal.<\/p>\n
By distancing
\nherself from the decision\u2014while still taking responsibility for its consequences\u2014she
\nhighlighted the difficult balancing act facing UDA-aligned leaders seeking to
\nretain relevance in a region that feels betrayed.<\/p>\n
The move also
\ncomes at a time when DCP is sustaining
\npressure on UDA, consolidating support across the region.<\/p>\n
His messaging
\nhas resonated, particularly among grassroots supporters who feel sidelined by
\nthe current administration.<\/p>\n
Waiguru
\nappeared to acknowledge this shifting tide, noting that defending the
\ngovernment has become increasingly difficult.<\/p>\n
Her remarks
\nalso come against the backdrop of recent realignments in the region, with her
\nMurang\u2019a and Kiambu counterparts declaring they will not defend their seats on
\nthe UDA ticket.<\/p>\n
At the same
\ntime, Waiguru\u2019s 2022 rival, Purity Ngirici, has also decamped from the
\ngovernment side, further signalling a broader political realignment in Mt
\nKenya.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru during the launch of the Sh200 million Mwea Integrated Water Supply Rehabilitation and Expansion…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":232145,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[14375,117971,12443,80,351,2201,9619,6058,387,1347,103584,352,98,100,36736,353,101,350,99],"class_list":{"0":"post-232144","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-kenya","8":"tag-anne-waiguru","9":"tag-gachagua-ouster","10":"tag-impeachment","11":"tag-kenya","12":"tag-kenya-news","13":"tag-kenya-politics","14":"tag-kirinyaga","15":"tag-mt-kenya","16":"tag-nairobi","17":"tag-rigathi-gachagua","18":"tag-ruto-administration","19":"tag-star","20":"tag-star-news","21":"tag-star-news-kenya","22":"tag-star-newspaper","23":"tag-star-newspaper-kenya","24":"tag-the-star","25":"tag-the-star-kenya","26":"tag-the-star-newspaper"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@africa\/116565375966205052","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/232144","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=232144"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/232144\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/232145"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=232144"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=232144"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=232144"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}