President William Ruto has notified the National Assembly that he has nominated Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki as Deputy President to replace Rigathi Gachagua, who was removed from office by impeachment on Thursday, October 17.
Born on July 16, 1972, in Irunduni village, Tharaka Constituency, Prof Kithure Kindiki is now just a step away from becoming the second in command and just a heartbeat away from the presidency.
An advocate of the High Court of Kenya with 21 years of experience where he has represented clients in both national and international courts, Prof Kindiki is set to become the second time lucky to clinch the position he missed out on in 2022.
Prof Kindiki is the only Cabinet Secretary who has maintained the docket he was appointed to since September 2022 even after the Cabinet was dissolved and reconstituted this year.
Prof Kindiki was instrumental in the negotiations and legal drafting of the coalition between The National Alliance (TNA) and the United Republican Party in 2012 and the Kenya Kwanza Alliance coalition bringing together 14 political parties in 2022.
An Infotrak survey results released recently put Prof Kindiki ahead at 20 per cent as the preferred candidate to replace Mr Gachagua if he is impeached with five percent throwing their weight behind Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru.
The Interior Cabinet Secretary is considered non-antagonistic and has acceptability across the political divide. His long-standing relationship with President Ruto will also be an advantage, having been his lawyer while he was facing charges at the International Criminal Court.
Having been reportedly endorsed by MPs in the run-up to the 2022 elections as Ruto’s running mate before Mr Gachagua was picked, Prof Kindiki was considered a front-runner after it became clear the Deputy President would be replaced.
In his own words, Dr Ruto while visiting Kathwana, in Tharaka Nithi County in June 2022, explained his interest in having Prof Kindiki in the national political arena.
“When I came to Kathwana and humbly asked you to give me this leader Abraham Kithure Kindiki, I asked you to donate him to me so that I have him in the national politics since he was now above being a senator or governor of Tharaka Nithi County.
“That day, I told you he was above being a governor and some of you were not happy, even refused to heed to my call,” Dr Ruto added.
He told the people of Tharaka Nithi, Prof Kindiki’s backyard, that the Interior CS had simply “missed the chance to be deputy president by a whisker.”
His nomination to replace Mr Gachagua as deputy president therefore comes as no surprise to many in UDA and Kenya Kwanza Alliance circles.
Key timelines
- Born on July 16, 1972 in Irunduni village Tharaka constituency
- 52 years old
- Advocate of the High Court of Kenya
- Attended Irunduni Primary School between 1980-1987 and Lenana School between 1988-1991
- Graduated from Moi University with a Bachelor of Laws (LL.B) in 1998
- Obtained a Master of Law (LL.M) from the University of Pretoria in 2000
- Earned his PhD in International Law from the University of Pretoria in 2002
- Lecturer in Law at Moi University between 2000-2003 and University of Nairobi between 2003-2011
- At UoN he served as the Head of Department of Public Law between 2005-2007 and Associate Dean of the School of Law from 2007-2010
- During his academic career, he was on various occasions a visiting lecturer at the University of Budapest, Hungary, the University of Sao Paulo (Brazil) and the University of Pretoria in South Africa
- Has published over 30 books and academic peer-reviewed journals
- 2012-2015 represented William Ruto at the International Criminal Court
- In March 2013 was elected the Senator for Tharaka Nithi
- Between 2013-2017, he served as the first Senate majority leader for five years
- In 2017, he was re-elected as Tharaka Nithi senator and served as deputy senate speaker for three years
- Appointed Interior Cabinet Secretary in 2022
