Sifuna declares readiness to work with Gachagua despite backing his impeachment
Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna with former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua during a past function.
Nairobi senator says opposition’s shared mission to remove Ruto overrides past political differences
By David Kimani
Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna yesterday declared his willingness to work with former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, despite having voted for his impeachment, arguing that the opposition’s common goal of removing President William Ruto from power supersedes their history of political conflict.
Speaking on Citizen TV’s The Explainer, Sifuna said the Linda Mwananchi movement would collaborate with anyone committed to the Constitution, the rule of law and the removal of Ruto from office. “We will work with everyone who believes in these things — the Constitution and the rule of law. We will work with anyone who believes that Ruto does not deserve an extra day in office and, for as long as that’s our cause, we will work together,” he said.
The former ODM Secretary General was unapologetic about his earlier vote against Gachagua, framing it as a matter of legal principle rather than personal animosity. “Nothing has changed. As a lawyer, I’ll tell you there’s a rule against double jeopardy. He paid for his mistakes — he was impeached. What else do you want me to do, beat him?” he said. “I already voted to impeach him and it was for specific crimes, but he’s the one now saying Ruto is an existential threat to this country.”
Sifuna went further, arguing that Gachagua carries a particular moral obligation in the effort to dislodge Ruto, given his role in helping him ascend to power. “He feels largely responsible for Ruto being in power and therefore has a greater responsibility in removing him than anyone else — and that is something I agree with, because at the end of the day, we have to kick out Ruto,” he said.
The senator also moved to rebut allegations that legislators were paid to support the impeachment motion, a claim made by National Assembly Minority Leader Junet Mohamed at an ODM meeting in Kakamega on Saturday. “I did not need any inducement when it came to Gachagua’s impeachment because I had publicly taken positions against his conduct — particularly his interference in the running of Nairobi City County,” Sifuna said.
Junet’s remarks at the Kakamega meeting, in which he alleged that money changed hands during the impeachment process, have sharpened tensions within opposition ranks at a moment when those same ranks are being asked to unite behind a single anti-Ruto front.
Whether the alliance Sifuna envisions — one that stretches from those who impeached Gachagua to Gachagua himself — can hold together long enough to pose a credible threat to Ruto ahead of 2027 remains the central question in Kenyan opposition politics.
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