Hired goons unleash terror, rob as police block Gachagua rally

Kikuyu town yesterday witnessed scenes of police heavy-handedness and alleged impunity as they disrupted a planned peaceful political meeting by former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua.

A heavy police presence, coupled with reports of assault, teargas use and live ammunition, brought transport and economic activities to a standstill as suspected hired goons and police officers blocked Gachagua  from addressing his supporters.

The chaos began as early as 6 a.m. when suspected goons barricaded roads leading into the town. Some allegedly demanded bribes from motorists, while others set vehicle tyres ablaze.

Among those affected was a driver transporting sugar from Mombasa to Juba, whore bore the brunt of the unrest.

The driver said the club wielding attackers intercepted his truck at Thogoto and, as he attempted to make a U-turn, a group of about 10 men ambushed him, damaging the tyres with nails embedded in pieces of wood.

“I did not know what was happening. I just saw a rowdy group of youths carrying nails, wood and stones. Before I could turn, the truck got stuck and they caught up with me. They punctured the tyres and stole about Sh50,000 and two phones, a Samsung and Tecno,” he said.

From 6 a.m. to around midday, when the Sunday Standard team encountered him, he was still stranded at Thogoto along the Southern bypass waiting for assistance. He said police officers were nowhere to be seen.

This incident marked the beginning of the wider chaos involving goons and police.

In Kikuyu town, supporters of Gachagua had begun gathering by 1 pm awaiting his arrival alongside other opposition leaders. By 1:30pm unidentified individuals allegedly threw a beehive into the crowded town centre, an incident that gave police an opening to lob tear gas and fire gunshots in an attempt to disperse the already charged crowd, which had been enjoying music as they waited.

As people fled from the tear gas and the sound of gunfire, a woman was trampled and left writhing in pain with no immediate assistance.

By 2pm police helicopters were circling overhead, carrying out aerial surveillance, while more than 30 police vehicles with officers in balaclavas patrolled Kikuyu town.

As tension escalated, chants of “one term” echoed through the streets as supporters engaged in a cat-and-mouse confrontation with police, who  repeatedly fired tear gas to disperse the crowds from the town’s business centre.

Orders from above

Police officers had also blocked all entry points leading into Kikuyu town, with sources within the National Police Service (NPS) indicating that they had been instructed to prevent Gachagua from addressing the gathering.

“We have been instructed not to allow Gachagua to access this town or speak here. We are here to implement orders that have come from above,” one officer told The Sunday Standard on condition of anonymity.

Businesses remained closed as traders feared possible looting and vandalism by goons, while transport along the Southern Bypass was paralysed after several roads were closed.

By 3:19pm Gachagua’s entourage was spotted near the Makutano area on the outskirts of Kikuyu town, where police lobbed tear gas to block his entry. He instead bypassed the heavy security deployment and made a brief stop along the Southern Bypass.

“My fellow opposition leaders, including Kalonzo Musyoka (Wiper) and Fred Matiang’i (Jubilee), were accompanying me, but their vehicles were waylaid, forcing them to turn back. Because I am a Mau Mau freedom fighter, I managed to confuse the police and accessed this area,” Gachagua said.

He accused the Leader of Majority in the National Assembly and area MP Kimani Ichung’wa of using police to manage politics, urging voters to vote him out in the next election.

“It is a shame for President William Ruto and Ichung’wa to resort to using police to manage politics. These are the very issues President Ruto vowed against when he was seeking our votes. For that reason alone, we shall vote them out,” Gachagua said.

Barely had he begun addressing the crowd when police lobbed more tear gas, forcing him to cut short his speech in confusion.

However, the crowd blocked his convoy and insisted that he address them, forcing him to regroup once again.

“It is unfortunate that Ichung’wa wants to kill the very people who elected him. Together with Ruto, they are the greatest cowards. The use of live ammunition and tear gas cannot stop an idea whose time has come,” he said.

Police, some using Probox vehicles, regrouped and again lobbed tear gas, targeting both Gachagua’s entourage and the gathered crowd.

Police continued lobbing tear gas in rapid succession as Gachagua’s convoy was escorted towards Nairobi, while other vehicles trailed the crowd on the outskirts of Kikuyu town, effectively dispersing the political gathering and bringing the rally to a halt.

Both Gachagua and Ichung’wa on Friday wrote separate letters to Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja, each accusing the other of mobilising goons ahead of the rally to incite violence and shift blame for the chaos.

Gachagua raised alarm over what he termed a planned disruption of his meeting, accusing Ichung’wa of being the mastermind behind the alleged attacks.

The DCP leader questioned Kanja on why the National Police Service (NPS) had not summoned Ichung’wa to clarify what he termed as admissions of foreknowledge of possible crimes.

“We have intelligence and confirmation from the ground that, pursuant to his proclamations, the MP is organising violence involving goons and the police. The organised groups are meant to create mayhem, vandalise businesses and attack targeted establishments  to trigger police response through tear gas and ammunition. In reality, the police would be acting as back-up to the goons with the aim of scuttling our meeting,” he alleged.

Planning meetings

He further alleged that the MP had planned to block major roads in and out of Kikuyu town by stalling heavy trucks along the highways, disguised as mechanical breakdowns, in order to restrict access to the venue and enable attacks on his convoy.

In a letter dated April 9, 2026 at 10 a.m., Gachagua said a meeting of senior administration officers and police commanders was held at Kentmere Club on Limuru Road to plan the disruption. He also named six senior police officers in Kiambu County whom he claimed were present.

While urging police to secure his meeting, Gachagua called on IG Kanja, Ichung’wah and senior commanders in Kiambu County to be held accountable for any violence that might occur during his political tour.

“I have held successful meetings in other areas within Kiambu. What makes Kikuyu Town special and predisposed to violence? Kikuyu Town is part of Kenya and does not operate on a separate set of laws, unless Ichung’wah is the law by which Kikuyu Constituency operates,” he said.

In a separate letter to the Inspector General, Ichung’wah accused Gachagua of allegedly orchestrating violence ahead of his planned rally in Kikuyu Constituency, saying the intention was to destabilise the area through hate speech and mobilisation of criminal gangs.

“I have consistently stated, as a peace-loving and law-abiding Kenyan, that Kikuyu is part and parcel of Kenya and that all leaders are welcome here,” Ichung’wah wrote, adding that his duty as an elected leader compelled him to raise security concerns with the police chief.

He further alleged that incidents of violence and destruction in the constituency in recent years were linked to Gachagua’s political networks, citing the burning of NG-CDF offices on June 25, 2024 and attacks on public and private property on June 25, 2025.

Ichung’wah also claimed intelligence reports indicated mobilisation of groups across Kiambu, Nairobi, Murang’a, Kirinyaga and Nyandarua counties to disrupt activities in Kikuyu town, warning that even his family businesses could be targeted.

He urged the Inspector General to maintain adequate police deployment and warned against attempts to “manufacture a crisis” or shift blame to security agencies or political opponents.