Gachagua had alleged during a televised interview on Wednesday, December 10, that Kuria collaborated with the president to weaken his political strength in the region.
According to him, the government had a strategic plan to divide the votes in favour of the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) candidate.
However, Kuria dismissed the accusations as confused and inconsistent.
Through a bold message shared on his social media pages, he challenged Gachagua to decide what exactly he believed happened.
“My brother Rigathi Gachagua, decide. Did I take your votes, or were your votes stolen? You cannot claim both at the same time,” Kuria wrote.
Gachagua explained that his party had initially settled on Duncan Mbui as their flagbearer for the by-election.
But after consulting elders from the community, he was advised that Mbui and Newton Kariuki — the Democratic Party (DP) candidate — belonged to the same clan.
According to him, fielding both candidates from one clan would split votes and weaken their chances.
Following the elders’ advice, Gachagua withdrew Mbui’s candidacy. Soon after, Mbui defected to Kuria’s CCK party, where he was handed the parliamentary ticket.
Gachagua interpreted this move as part of a wider scheme engineered by State House.
He claimed that the government reached out to Kuria and used the clan issue to divert votes away from DP candidate Newton Kariuki.
“The government talked to Kuria. His party has become another small wheelbarrow outfit in the region. The president asked him to take Mbui so that those 2,500 votes would not go to Newton Kariuki,” Gachagua said during the interview.
The Mbeere North by-election held on November 27 was the first major political contest since Gachagua’s dramatic impeachment from office.
The race attracted intense national attention because it was widely viewed as a battle between President Ruto’s camp and Gachagua’s newly formed opposition team.
In the final tally:
Leo Wa Muthende (UDA) emerged winner with 15,802 votes
Newton Kariuki (Karish, DP) followed closely with 15,308 votes
Duncan Mbui (CCK) came third with 2,480 votes
Gachagua insisted that Mbui’s votes would have naturally gone to Karish if the government had not interfered by pushing him to Kuria’s party.
In his response, Kuria announced that CCK will officially join the petition filed by Newton Kariuki challenging the by-election outcome.
He said that courtrooms are the best places for Gachagua to present evidence and prove whether votes were stolen or taken.
Kuria accused the former deputy president of attempting to build a political empire in the Mt Kenya region by forcing leaders to follow his agenda without questioning him.
He added that he would resist any form of political intimidation.
“We will not allow any leader to impose a personal rule in the region. The people of Mt Kenya must remain free to choose their direction without pressure,” Kuria stated.
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