Deputy President Kithure Kindiki has stepped up his engagement with Mt Kenya West in renewed efforts to rally the region to support President William Ruto's two-term bid.
On Friday, he used a tour of Kirinyaga to lay the ground for what's shaping up as a fresh 2027 political push.
He told residents of Mwea he and Ruto would return next year to ask for their vote.
The DP asked voters to judge their administration on its development record, exuding confidence the current administration has delivered its pledge to the region.
“When President Ruto and I come next year to ask for a second term, give us an opportunity to explain what we have done and account for our time in office,” Kindiki said.
He spoke during a public sensitisation event in Mwea constituency, Kirinyaga county, after inspecting various ongoing projects.
The DP used the tour to highlight ongoing road, agricultural and infrastructure projects.
The visit is part of Ruto team's new plan to pay more attention to Mt Kenya West.
It is understood the team led by Kindiki would be going round to dispel what they call "opposition rumours".
Kindiki is expected in Kiambu today for a similar effort, before proceeding to other counties for the project inspections trips.
Mt Kenya West is viewed as a politically significant region as the leaders position themselves ahead of the elections.
The effort, insiders say, is geared towards discounting any false information around government plans and projects.
During the Mwea tour, like it is expected in other regions, Kindiki sought to present the administration's development programme as the basis for seeking another term.
He used the occasion to take a swipe at political rivals whom he accused of concentrating on insults rather than development.
“I am not able to insult anybody, and in a competition of insults, I will lose because I have no insults,” he said.
“But when it comes to development competition, no one can defeat me.”
The tour comes barely weeks after key groups in Mt Kenya East endorsed the Deputy President as their leader, urging President Ruto to retain him in 2027.
His assignment is cut out, that is to bring numbers to the talks table.
Mt Kenya is a crucial vote bloc and UDA is said to be keen on bagging a percentage of it.
With the bargain for deputy presidency at stake, Kindiki has taken the charge of shoring up the numbers, for the region's bargains.
UDA partner ODM is already piling pressure for a 50-50 share, laying claim for among others the DP position.
A boost from Mt Kenya West is thus crucial, even as the East continues to pile pressure on their cousins to return the favour and support their son.
On Friday, press reports highlighted Public Service Cabinet Secretary Geoffrey Ruku, who has been championing for Mt Kenya split, setting a condition that leaders from Mt Kenya West recognise Kindiki as the region's spokesman.
He said it is only after that that he'll go slow on call to split the mountain.
In the tours, leaders are expected to explain government policy and highlight achievements.
For instance, the Deputy President said the government had allocated Sh37 billion for road development in Kirinyaga alone, citing projects in Mwea, Gichugu and Kirinyaga Central constituencies.
Among them are the Piai-Murinduko-Ndindiruku and Kiandegwa roads in Mwea and the Mucifi-Dia road in Gichugu.
Kindiki also said the Karira Bridge was 90 per cent complete and would be finished within one-and-a-half months, with tarmac expected to reach Muthigiti.
He attributed the progress to the settlement of debts owed to road contractors, saying stalled projects had now resumed.
“The many road projects currently underway across Kirinyaga county have never been undertaken by any previous government,” he said.
Kindiki also linked the road programme to efforts to open up agricultural markets, saying better roads would enable farmers to transport produce faster and reduce transport costs.
He announced the government would not import rice until it had bought locally produced rice, including from Mwea and other rice-growing areas.
“We will not import any rice until we have bought all the rice produced here in Mwea and in other areas that grow rice in our country,” he said.
The DP also highlighted changes in prices for agricultural commodities and farm inputs, saying coffee prices had risen from about Sh50 four years ago to between Sh140 and Sh150.
He said milk prices had risen from Sh35 in 2022 to about Sh50, while the price of subsidised fertiliser had fallen from Sh7,000 to Sh2,000 per bag.
Kindiki further announced a subsidy on certified maize seed, saying a kilogramme would be sold at Sh150 instead of Sh300.
He also said the Kirinyaga County Aggregation and Industrial Park at Sagana, jointly funded by the national and county governments at Sh500 million, was complete and would be operationalised within weeks.
The facility is expected to support value addition for tomatoes, milk and other agricultural products.
“We are going to operationalise the Kirinyaga County Aggregation and Industrial Park in the next few weeks so that our farmers can get markets and good prices for their products,” he said.
Kindiki also cited the new Huduma Centre at Ngurubani, funded through the Mwea NG-CDF at a cost of Sh25 million, saying residents would no longer need to travel to Kerugoya or Embu for government services.
The DP used the occasion to defend the administration against criticism over its record, saying Ruto and himself were focused on work rather than political exchanges.
“We have no chance of engaging in insults, ridicule or wasting time. We are men at work, and we must work hard for our country because the needs of the people of Kenya are many,” he said.
He said the government was also pursuing the construction of Nyamindi Dam to increase water supply in Mwea.
Kindiki extended his development pitch beyond Kirinyaga, highlighting the Rironi-Mau Summit road as a project intended to connect Mt Kenya West with Nakuru and the Rift Valley.
He said the Rironi-Naivasha section was expected to be complete by October 26, after which work would be pushed towards Gilgil and Nakuru.
“We want, by the time we go for elections, that road to be in Nakuru or even beyond to Mau Summit because we want our people in Nakuru, Naivasha, Nyandarua and Kiambu to get a dual carriageway,” he said.
Kindiki said funding had been secured for the Rironi-Mau Summit road through a public-private partnership.
