Resurfacing Rift: Moses Kuria and Rigathi Gachagua Clash Over One-Man One-Shilling Declaration
Public Service Cabinet Secretary Moses Kuria has revived his disagreement with Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua over Gachagua’s backing of the one-man one-vote one-shilling policy.
On Monday, the deputy president told a gathering that the policy was crucial to ensure a fair distribution of government resources.
Kuria, who has supported the policy, interpreted Gachagua’s statement as hostile, arguing that the Mt Kenya region was already well represented in top government positions.
He pointed out that more than nine leaders from the region held Cabinet and parliamentary positions and were in a good position to lead the implementation of the policy.
“This is why I won’t mislead the people of Mt Kenya about one man one vote one shilling. Our region has produced the sitting Deputy President, 9 Cabinet members (including AG, National Treasury, and Secretary to the Cabinet), Majority Leader, Chair Budget and Chair Finance in the National Assembly, Deputy Speaker, and Deputy Majority Leader in the Senate,” Kuria stated.
“What more power are we seeking? We are part of the government and we can implement One Man, One Vote, One Shilling by Friday if we are committed. Let’s be truthful with our people.”
Rigathi supported Kuria’s stance, arguing that Mt Kenya was densely populated and therefore deserved more representation in resource allocation.
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For example, he cited Ruiru, which has a population of 800,000, stating that it was unfair to allocate resources equally to less populated areas.
“In revenue sharing, I firmly believe in one-man-one-vote-one-shilling. It’s a simple concept: the more people and taxes in an area, the more funding it should receive,” Gachagua said.
“The push for this formula isn’t just about our region’s population but about fairness in national revenue sharing.”
In November 2019, Kuria had advocated for the one-vote, one-shilling formula and had insisted it be included as a condition for his support of the then Building Bridges Initiative.
“We’ll strongly support the BBI report if it guarantees us one man, one vote, one shilling, and if it reduces the burden of representation and big government,” Kuria stated at the time.
The two leaders had previously clashed over the Mt Kenya leadership position.
In November of the prior year, Gachagua hinted at a fallout with Kuria after he supported Kiambu Governor Kimani Wamatangi for reelection in the 2022 polls.
At the time, Kuria was also running for Kiambu Governor alongside Patrick ‘Jungle’ Wainaina, Tujibebe Party Leader William Kabogo, and former Governor James Nyoro.
Resurfacing Rift: Moses Kuria and Rigathi Gachagua Clash Over One-Man One-Shilling Declaration