A rift has emerged in President William Ruto’s Cabinet after Lands Cabinet Secretary Alice Wahome and Public Service CS Geoffrey Ruku differed over Mt Kenya’s voting dynamics ahead of the 2027 General Election.
Wahome on July 8 rejected attempts to divide the Mt Kenya region along eastern and western lines. She argued that such politics undermines Ruto's efforts to unite the country.
"If we now take a community and start resubdividing the community, we are not building in the direction the head of state has taken in this country of uniting the country irrespective of the region that opposed him," Wahome said.
Ruku had claimed a day earlier that Mt Kenya East does not need support from Mt Kenya West to secure Ruto's re-election. He said the region's estimated two million votes are sufficient without depending on support from the Kikuyu community in Mt Kenya West.
"Our two million votes are enough, without asking for the Kikuyu vote, to make sure William Ruto is re-elected," Ruku said. He added that leaders from Mt Kenya East would later back Deputy President Kithure Kindiki's presidential bid.