Former Nyeri Town MP Ngunjiri Wambugu found himself at the centre of a heated public confrontation at the burial of Annah Nyatoro Ndung’u mother of EALA MP Kanini Kega in Kieni Constituency Nyeri County on Thursday after a local MCA publicly lectured him over his persistent attacks on former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua.
MCA Wachuka directly addressed Wambugu during the burial ceremony warning him that continued insults against the man she called the truthful son of the mountain would make things not normal. Her intervention drew attention from those gathered at the funeral and was captured on video that quickly began circulating online.
Before the confrontation Wambugu had posted on Facebook in what many interpreted as a dig at Gachagua and his allies. He wrote that bad manners had begun at his aunt’s funeral and suggested they wait for the arrival of their High Priest who he implied would further disrupt proceedings. He ended the post with “Siasa tutapambana baadaye” signalling that he was holding his tongue for the moment but intended to respond later.
The Facebook post was widely read as a reference to Gachagua whom critics and supporters alike have nicknamed the High Priest. Wambugu’s use of the term was seen as mocking and his allies within the Gachagua camp moved quickly to push back.
Wambugu who was once aligned with Gachagua has become one of his most vocal critics following a falling out rooted in post-2022 political shifts. He has argued for broader political competition in the Mount Kenya region rather than the enforced unity around a single figure that Gachagua’s camp demands. The stance has earned him both admirers who see it as principled independence and enemies who view it as disloyalty.
Wachuka’s public lecture at the funeral reflected the deep grassroots loyalty Gachagua commands in his home region and the growing intolerance toward leaders perceived as undermining him. For many Gachagua supporters any criticism of their preferred leader especially at a public gathering is seen as a direct provocation that cannot go unanswered.
The incident turned what was meant to be a solemn farewell into a politically charged showdown exposing the fragile and increasingly tense fault lines running through Nyeri and Mount Kenya politics ahead of 2027.