Kiambaa MP John Njuguna Kawanjiku has declared his support for Deputy President Kithure Kindiki’s political future beyond the 2027 General Election, urging leaders from the Mt Kenya region to rally behind President William Ruto’s re election bid before turning their attention to the 2032 succession race.
Speaking at Kirigiti Primary and Junior School in Kiambu during its launch presided over by Prof Kindiki, Mr Kawanjiku said the region should remain firmly behind the current administration, arguing that abandoning the President before the end of his second term bid would undermine its political interests.
The legislator portrayed Prof Kindiki as the region’s preferred candidate for a future presidential ticket, telling political rivals seeking to replace him as deputy president to wait until 2032.
“We know where the people of the mountain have come closest to the presidency. It is through you as the Deputy President to President William Ruto in 2027,” Mr Kawanjiku said.
He maintained that leaders eyeing Prof Kindiki’s position should not expect the Mt Kenya region to support efforts to dislodge him from the deputy presidency ahead of the next election.
“Our brothers in the broad based arrangement should wait until 2032, when you will choose them to be your deputies. For now, we are not abandoning the Deputy President of William Ruto,” he said.
His remarks offered a glimpse into the emerging succession debate within the ruling political establishment, with the 2027 election increasingly featuring in discussions about the future leadership of the Mt Kenya region.
Mr Kawanjiku argued that the region should first honour its political commitment to President Ruto before considering who should lead it into the next presidential contest.
He invoked the region’s support for the President, saying residents should remain consistent with the political understanding that the current administration should be allowed to pursue a second term.
“Didn’t we promise 10 years of Uhuru Kenyatta and 10 years of William Ruto? We said William should also serve his 10 years,” he said.
The MP cited former presidents Daniel arap Moi, Mwai Kibaki and Uhuru Kenyatta in making his argument for continuity, although their tenures differed in length.
Mr Ruto is constitutionally limited to two presidential terms, with the 2027 election marking the end of his first term. If re elected, he would serve a second and final term ending in 2032.
Mr Kawanjiku said the region should begin considering its next political direction after the 2027 election, identifying Prof Kindiki as the leader he believes could carry its ambitions into the subsequent succession contest.
He told the Deputy President that he should remain confident despite what he described as efforts by political rivals to exploit divisions within the Mt Kenya region to challenge his position.
The legislator also linked his support for Prof Kindiki to what he described as a historical political debt owed by the Kikuyu community to residents of Meru and Tharaka Nithi.
He recalled the 2007 General Election, when Kibaki, then seeking a second term, faced a disputed presidential contest against opposition leader Raila Odinga. The ensuing political crisis erupted into violence that left more than 1,000 people dead and displaced hundreds of thousands.
Mr Kawanjiku said the support he associated with communities in the wider eastern region during that period remained an important consideration in the political calculations of Central Kenya leaders.
“We, the Kikuyu, know how to pay our debts. We remember the people of Tharaka Nithi and Meru, who stood with us in 2007 when we almost lost the presidency,” he said.
He suggested that backing Prof Kindiki in the future could be one way of recognising those historical ties, urging Central Kenya voters to remember the relationships forged during the Kibaki presidency.
“We are waiting for your time to come. As the people of Central Kenya, we will pour out our votes to repay that debt,” he said.
The remarks underscored the role that regional alliances, historical grievances and political reciprocity could play in shaping succession discussions ahead of the next two General Elections.
However, Mr Kawanjiku’s position also places the region’s immediate electoral priorities firmly around Mr Ruto’s re election, rather than an early contest over who should succeed him.
He urged Prof Kindiki to remain focused on his current responsibilities, assuring him that leaders and voters who shared his political position would continue to support him.
The MP further argued that the region’s economic contribution should be reflected in its political engagement with the national government.
He described Mt Kenya as a major contributor to national revenue and questioned why the region should abandon an administration in which it already held a senior leadership position.
“We are not fools, and we are not stupid. We know that we are among the biggest contributors to the national tax base. We cannot put our money into a vessel and then walk away, leaving others to determine how it is used,” he said.
His remarks reflected an argument for continued political participation within the administration, with the region seeking to maintain influence over national decision making.
Mr Kawanjiku also praised Prof Kindiki’s efforts to organise and engage leaders from the region, telling residents gathered at Kirigiti to remain behind the Deputy President.
He welcomed Prof Kindiki to Kiambu and promised continued support, saying the region would stand with him in his current role as the government navigates the 2027 election and the subsequent political transition.
“Deputy President, we have welcomed you here. Come again and again, and we assure you that where you stand is where we will cast our votes as the people of Kiambu,” he said.
The legislator’s remarks came against the backdrop of wider political realignments within Mt Kenya, where leaders have been debating the region’s relationship with the national government and its representation in the country’s future leadership.
His message was that the region should avoid a premature succession battle, consolidate its position ahead of 2027 and consider Prof Kindiki’s political ambitions in the years that follow.
For now, Mr Kawanjiku’s proposed political sequence is clear that support Mr Ruto’s bid for a second term in 2027, retain Prof Kindiki in the deputy presidency and begin a new succession campaign after the election.
Whether that position will command wider support across Mt Kenya remains a question for the region’s leaders and voters as the next General Election approaches.
