On August 15, 2026, Deputy President Kithure Kindiki announced he possessed a dossier detailing private, late‑night conversations with his predecessor, Rigathi Gachagua, and warned he would make the contents public if the former deputy persisted in “attacking” him. The claim was echoed in a YouTube clip that captured Kindiki’s stern warning, and it quickly spread through social media, including a tweet that summarized the threat with the punchy line, “I’ve Your Dossier!”.
Kindiki’s political ascent began as Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for Interior, a role that placed him at the heart of the country’s security apparatus. By the time of his August 2026 statements, he had been elevated to the nation’s second‑highest office as Deputy President, a position he now holds while confronting his former colleague. The YouTube footage shows Kindiki addressing the audience as Deputy President, underscoring the weight of his accusations.
Rigathi Gachagua served as Kenya’s second deputy president from September 2022 until his removal in October 2024, when the National Assembly voted to impeach him. The impeachment, a rare and dramatic constitutional event, ended his tenure and set the stage for the rivalry that Kindiki now invokes. Wikipedia’s entry on Gachagua confirms his term and the date of his ouster.
According to Kindiki, he made “several late‑night visits” to Gachagua while serving as Interior Cabinet Secretary, attempting to counsel the deputy president on maintaining loyalty to President William Ruto. He recounted telling Gachagua, “I came to visit you many nights when I was Interior CS,” and warned that ignoring his advice contributed to Gachagua’s eventual downfall. The YouTube clip records Kindiki’s own words, while multiple news articles from Kenyan outlets repeat the same narrative.
Kindiki framed his counsel as a matter of political survival, urging Gachagua to “repair his relationship with President William Ruto” and stay loyal, suggesting that such allegiance could “position you to succeed him.” The implication is clear: a break with Ruto’s administration was, in Kindiki’s view, a fatal miscalculation that led to Gachagua’s impeachment. This narrative aligns with the broader power dynamics within the Kenya Kwanza coalition, where loyalty to the president remains a litmus test for political relevance.
Gachagua, now an opposition figure, has largely refused to engage directly with Kindiki’s accusations, stating he “cannot talk about Kindiki because he is an appointee of the President.” Nonetheless, he has reiterated his own political agenda, announcing plans to build a coalition aimed at unseating President Ruto in 2027. The public exchange has sharpened the rift between the two men, with Kindiki accusing Gachagua of “looking down on” him and warning against “overconfidence” that, according to Kindiki, precipitated the former deputy’s removal.
A dossier of private conversations can be a potent political weapon in Kenya’s highly personalized political arena. By threatening to release the contents, Kindiki not only signals his willingness to expose potentially compromising remarks but also seeks to deter Gachagua and his allies from further criticism. In a system where intra‑elite disputes often spill into public arenas, such a threat can reshape alliances, influence voter perceptions, and affect the calculus of upcoming electoral contests.
- Rigathi Gachagua — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rigathi_Gachagua - twitter — https://x.com/TheStarKenya/status/2088871926483603617 - twitter — https://x.com/citizentvkenya/status/2088695808543592804 - Kindiki claims he holds 'dossier' on Gachagua - The Star — https://www.the-star.co.ke/news/2026-08-16-kindiki-claims-he-holds-dossier-on-gachagua - DP’s Diary: Kindiki’s flurry of meetings at Karen residence — https://www.the-star.co.ke/news/realtime/2025-02-01-dps-diary-kindikis-flurry-of-meetings-at-karen-residence - Kindiki Reveals How He Tried To Save Gachagua From Impeachment — https://thekenyatimes.com/latest-kenya-times-news/kindiki-reveals-secret-night-meetings-with-gachagua-before-his-impeachment/ - Ex-DP Gachagua opens up on relationship with Kindiki — https://thefamoustv.com/this-comes-barely-two-months-after-kindiki-said-that-his-relationship-with-gachagua-had-not-changed-despite-being-impeached-and-that-they-remained-friends/ - Kithure Kindiki Explains How He Pleaded with Gachagua to Avoid ... — https://www.tuko.co.ke/politics/636445-kithure-kindiki-explains-how-pleaded-gachagua-avoid-kimbelembele-impeachment/ - youtube — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGOidx2Deyo