Eldoret-based human rights activist Kipkorir Ngetich has strongly condemned Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua over alleged statements claiming the government has recruited a killer squad from the Nandi community.
In a statement issued from Eldoret, Ngetich termed Gachagua’s utterances as “reckless, deeply divisive, and a threat to the peace and unity that communities in the Rift Valley have worked tirelessly to build since the 2007/08 post-election violence.”
“It is beyond alarming that a senior government official can stoop this low and attempt to label an entire community as killers,” said Ngetich. “These remarks are not only false, they are a calculated incitement designed to provoke ethnic hostility.”
Ngetich noted that the Nandi and Kikuyu communities have lived side by side in peace, especially in cosmopolitan areas like Eldoret, Molo, and Nakuru. “We have seen great healing since the dark days of tribal violence. People intermarry, farm together, trade together, and raise families across ethnic lines. This kind of language from Gachagua is dragging us back.”
He called on the National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) to take urgent action against Gachagua for ethnic profiling and incitement. “He must either be held accountable before a court of law or subjected to a mental health evaluation if he truly believes the dangerous claims he is spreading. Leadership requires sobriety, not hysteria.”
The human rights advocate further warned that such remarks could spark tensions in sensitive areas like Uasin Gishu, Nandi, and Kericho, where mixed communities have often been manipulated by political elites for selfish gain.
“This isn’t just political mischief – this is a threat to national security,” Ngetich emphasized. “The Deputy President’s words can be interpreted as a direct attempt to pit the Kikuyu against the Kalenjin communities. That cannot be allowed under any circumstances.”
Ngetich called on the international community, religious leaders, and civil society to join Kenyans in rejecting any form of tribal incitement. “The time has come to draw a firm line. We either defend our unity or allow a few misguided individuals to drag Kenya into bloodshed for their own political survival.”
He urged the President to protect the dignity of all communities, including the Nandi, who have been unjustly maligned. “No community should ever be collectively branded. That is how genocide starts – with hate speech dressed as politics.”.
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