Gachagua Discloses He Took 7-Day Break To Pray, Meditate Inside Mt Kenya Forest: "I Reflected"

• Rigathi Gachagua has revealed his recent no-show from crucial state events was due to his prayer mission deep inside the Mt Kenya Forest
• He said he was immersed in prayers, fasting and meditation on behalf of the country and his native Mt Kenya region
• Speculation had gone rife about the deputy president's supposed fallout with President William Ruto

Kai Eli, a journalist at TUKO.co.ke, brings more than three years of experience covering politics and current affairs in Kenya.

Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua now says his recent absence from the public was strategic for the country's benefit.

Why I was missing in public, Gachagua

He revealed he was in the core of the Mt Kenya Forest, immersed in prayers and meditation, seeking divine intervention for Kenya.

Owing to the importance of his mission, he revealed that he was in isolation and sidelined his phone to avert distractions.

"I had taken seven days away for prayers, fasting, reflection and meditation in the heart of Mt Kenya Forest. I had no phone, and nobody could disturb me, I had given clear instructions. I wanted to reflect and meditate on the state of our nation and the welfare of the people of this region," he said.

The deputy president spoke in Kirinyaga on Tuesday, May 21, while gracing the send-off of his former high school teacher.

Video; courtesy

Gachagua goes missing

Questions had earlier abounded among Kenyans about the deputy president's conspicuous absence from the public.

As it were, Gachagua would not miss any event in which Ruto is in attendance, or at the very least, he would share all the live feeds from the president's official pages.

Until Sunday, May 19, Gachagua's last public appearance was on May 12, when he interacted with the residents of Kagumo in Kirinyaga.

Unlikely of him, he did not honour part of his diary on Friday, May 10, when he was slated to lead a tree-planting exercise in Bomet.

The above went unnoticed for a time as the president and members of his Cabinet spread across the country took charge of the national event.

His absence was loud on May 15 when Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni landed in Nairobi for his three-day state visit.

During the joint addresses by Ruto and Museveni on Thursday, May 16, at State House, Nairobi, the deputy president was also a no-show despite all the members of the Cabinet being present.

At the end of Museveni's visit, it was Kenya's Roads Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen and opposition chief Raila Odinga to see him (Museveni) off.

Gachagua snubs Ruto's return from Rwanda

On the evening of Friday, May 17, the deputy president was not at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) to receive him from his trip to Rwanda.

Only Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki, his Defence colleague Aden Duale, Majority Leader in the National Assembly Kimani Ichung'wah and Chief of Defence Forces General Charles Kahariri were spotted welcoming Ruto back.

With the foregoing instances, observant Kenyans queried what could be ongoing in the country's top mantle of leadership.

His office has been mum on his move to be quiet.

Only so much was heard from him during that period, despite his constant verbal aggression in public at the slightest of opportunities.

Prior to these uncertainties, Gachagua often confirmed allegiance to Ruto whom he promised to deputise with loyalty and utmost submission.

The duo jointly sought office with the UDA party ticket in the 2022 elections.

Proofreading by Otukho Jackson, a multimedia journalist and copy editor at TUKO.co.ke

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Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua addresses mourners in Kirinyaga.

Gachagua Discloses He Took 7-Day Break to Pray, Meditate Inside Mt

Gachagua Discloses He Took 7-Day Break to Pray, Meditate Inside Mt