This archive report was first published on 2 July 2019.
Uhuru's Desperate Bid to Regain Grip on Mount Kenya ¶
With his sights set on Mount Kenya to back his preferred presidential candidate in 2022, Uhuru Kenyatta is desperate to stem the discontent that has been loosening his grip on the region.
Uhuru's recent attacks on Kikuyu MPs during an Akorino prayer meeting at Kasarani are part of a plot to lay the groundwork for his visit with Raila Odinga.
Only recently, Raila, with Uhuru's blessing, officiated at the groundbreaking ceremony at Tatu city, where he was received by the local county security team. Governor Ferdinand Waititu of Kiambu county was also in attendance.
Since the repeat presidential election on October 17, 2017, there have been growing murmurs in Mount Kenya that the president is disinterested in the region.
As part of the strategy, a recent elders' meeting that was fully funded to the tune of Sh10 million backed the handshake deal and the Team Embrace Kenya, which is part of the planned visit.
Uhuru's feeling of being taken for granted by the Kikuyu community was made worse by the March 9, 2018, handshake between the president and Raila, with Kikuyus saying that Uhuru is taking them for small children because only a few months back during campaigns, he had been moving in Central, pleading with them to come out in large numbers and rescue him from
