NAIROBI: Kenya’s Geoffrey Rigathi Gachagua was a scandal-tainted political novice when he rode an anti-establishment wave to become deputy president — only to now face impeachment just two years after taking office.
“Riggy G”, as he is known, has seen his popular touch eroded by a battered economy and spiralling cost of living.
That has left the 59-year-old exposed and facing the sack in the latest drama to engulf Kenyan politics, as his alliance with President William Ruto goes through a very public breakdown.
Gachagua, a blunt leader with a gift of the gab, is accused in the impeachment motion of corruption, undermining the government and practising ethnically divisive politics, among a host of other charges.
Analysts say his real crime may have been his unbridled ambition and refusal to fall in line behind Ruto.
Born on February 28, 1965, in Hiriga village in the vote-rich Mount Kenya region, his parents fought in the Mau Mau rebellion against British colonial rule.
He studied political science and literature at the University of Nairobi before doing paramilitary training and becoming a district officer in charge of internal security.
District officers wielded massive power under the repressive regime of then-president Daniel arap Moi, and he used the position to build business and political connections.
