DP Gachagua's sartorial evolution turns heads as he dumps baggy suits for fancier outfits

Gachagua's entrance into the Kenyan online discourse was immediately hijacked by the fashion police who picked out his love for ill-fitting suits and crumpled shirts - most of which collapsed shabbily on his rotund frame, leaving him looking ridiculously outmoded.

The suits were not the only thing which turned the Deputy President-to-be into a risible caricature - he had a knack for regularly making unfettered pronouncements which many found a little cringe and politically incorrect.

At one of his first TV interviews, ahead of the swearing-in, Mr Gachagua admitted to his poor sense of style, acknowledging that he had been following the discourse around his unsavoury looks while also promising to work on it.

"Going forward I will be back to the gym. I know many people have been raising questions about how I dress and I want to tell them I had no luxury to think about dressing," Gachagua told journalists at his Karen home.

He added; "I was in danger and had to look over my shoulder to make sure that I live to take care of my family."

The DP then assured Kenyans that, in three short months, he would go back to sporting a suave look. 

"I am in a pretty bad shape. In another three months, I will be in very good shape and people will love it," he asserted.

Not too long after vowing to spruce up his tepid look, the DP started stepping out looking smoother, suaver and more elegant.

The shabby suits were now gone and in their place, a cultured look marked by fancy jumpsuits, swanky jackets, designer sunglasses and better-fitting Italian suits. Two weeks ago, he even showed up wearing Air Force 1's, the man he promised in 2022 had arrived.

A few days ago, a picture of Mr Gachagua at State House looking dapper in a blue suit hit the interwebs and everyone was impressed.

On Tuesday, he showed up in Embu for the Drama Festivals and he even threw in a cowboy hat.

Just a month later, in September 2022, the DP wowed Kenyans with a sleek suit, as he posed next to Nyali MP Mohammed Ali, dressed in a fitting single-breasted black suit, a crisp red tie and a sheeny pair of Hancock designer shoes. 

On the Mohammed Ali Instagram post, which now stands at over 3,400 'LIKES', at least 98% of the comments are acknowledgements of Gachagua's refined look. 

And in December 2023, at the Youth Connekt Africa summit, Gachagua pulled up looking like a retired American baseball player - he pulled up donning a comfortable yet presentable white tracksuit with a touch of gold, with his brand name 'Riggy G', conspicuously running at the edges.

To complete the look, Gachagua threw on a pair of stylish dark sunglasses and a pair of attention-grabbing white sneakers.

A fazed Karen Nyamu couldn't hide her excitement at the look, taking to Instagram to marvel.

"Bossy amepiga looku hatari. Shoe game pia ni kama ile ya baba Nimu... (Samidoh)..." she wrote.

Since then, Gachagua appears to fancy colourful tracksuits as he takes lone early-morning walks either in the mountainous regions of Nanyuki or the serene beaches of Malindi.

And just like his boss too, the DP appears to have embraced Kaunda suits as well, as evidenced in the khaki one he wore on April 6 while giving a public lecture at Pwani University.

His official suits, too, have become better - he appears to have dumped his local tailor in favour of a more renowned one either from Italy or from the high streets of Paris.

Each day, his appearance seems to get finer, his suits appear to look trimmer, his frame has gotten leaner, his fashion has become tastier and his overall look has definitely gotten svelter.

And as far as his public utterances are concerned, the anger, vitriol and vilification of the electioneering period are now also gone - the DP has lately embraced a reconciliatory tone, even publicly apologising to former first lady Mama Ngina Kenyatta over his previous statements regarding the First Family.