Gachagua: Why I did not attend Raila’s burial, and why I’m yet to visit Bondo

Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has spoken on why he neither attended the State funeral service of the late former Prime Minister Raila Odinga at Nyayo National Stadium nor his subsequent burial in Bondo.

Speaking during an interview on Ramogi TV on Wednesday evening, the Democracy for Citizens Party (DCP) leader revealed that security concerns and intelligence reports informed his decision to stay away.

Gachagua claimed that there were organised plans to attack him during both events, which he says were intended to spark ethnic tensions between the Luo and Kikuyu communities.

“I had planned to go to the Nyayo National Stadium, and I got information that some goons had been arranged to attack me so that it could create conflict between the Luo nation and the Kikuyu nation,” he daid.

“I applied my mind as a senior politician and as a strategist and I realized that it was a very important occasion for Raila Odinga and his followers, and it would have been imprudent of me to seem like I had brought chaos into a very solemn ceremony that was very important.”

Gachagua explained that despite his intention to attend both the funeral service in Nairobi and the burial ceremony in Bondo, he opted out after assessing what he described as credible threats to his safety and the broader implications such incidents could have had on national cohesion.

“I planned to go to Bondo, I also got information. Where I’m coming from, as you know, I’ve been attacked by goons in this Nairobi, and most of them have been organized by a senior civil servant from Luo Nyanza. The goons that attacked me in church in Kariobangi…in Mwiki…when I was coming from the airport…were organized by a senior politician from Nyanza who is also organizing goons in Nyanza. The ones that heckled (Siaya Governor James) Orengo were organized by the same person,” he claimed.

The former DP further asserted that his decision was informed by intelligence from within security circles, warning that any attack against him in Bondo could have triggered wider ethnic tensions.

“I have my own intelligence, (so) I get to know what goes on in the security sector and in the country. So when I learnt that also in Bondo there were plans to attack me physically as a strategy to create a wedge between the Luo nation and the Kikuyu nation…because what would have happened if I was attacked in Bondo, the Kikuyu nation would’ve felt very bad, and (this would’ve) created enmity with the Luo nation who have nothing against me,” he stated.

He maintained that he enjoys goodwill among residents of the Nyanza region, citing past visits where he said he received a warm reception.

“The last time I was in the Luo nation in the company of William Ruto when I was his deputy, I was given such rousing welcome in Migori, Homa Bay, Siaya and Kisumu. For the four days we were in Nyanza, the Luo nation welcomed me like a king,” he said.

Gachagua added that he deliberately avoided both events to prevent any possibility of chaos during what he described as a solemn and significant moment for Odinga’s family and supporters.

“So I knew people who have dirty schemes of trying to create a wedge between the two communities wanted to attack me at Nyayo National Stadium and in Bondo to create conflict between the two communities, but I’m too smart of a politician to fall into such hands,” he added.

On why he has yet to visit Raila’s home in Bondo six months after his death and subsequent burial, Gachagua said he had already reached out to the family and is awaiting an appropriate time.

“I called Mama Ida Odinga and gave her my personal condolences…Pastor Dorcas and I…and we placed a request that we would like to go to Bondo, and she told us that things were still quite heavy and at an appropriate time she will give us an answer. We’re still waiting,” he said.

He emphasised that out of respect for family traditions and cultural norms, he would not visit the home uninvited.

“I was ready, with my elders and everybody, but we cannot go to a home unless the owner of that home tells us to come. She told us to wait and we’re still waiting. You cannot force yourself into somebody’s home. I’m an elder and a leader in this country, I’m also a person who respects families and homes and traditions,” he added.