Deputy President Kithure Kindiki has said he has forgiven political opponents who have insulted him, vowing to heed elders’ advice and avoid political confrontations.
Kindiki said he would no longer respond to insults from political opponents, urging leaders to sell their policies instead of attacking one another.
Speaking in Kiambu, Kindiki said he had been insulted several times by people he had respected and worked with but had chosen to rise above the attacks.
“There are those who have called me names, sijui soprano sijui nini… I want to say here that I have forgiven them unconditionally. I have nothing personal against them,” Kindiki said.
He said although he was not a person who engaged in insults, repeated attacks had at times pushed him to respond.
“Unajua mimi si mtu wa matusi lakini wamenisukuma sana mpaka imebidi nimewajibu lakini nimewasamehe,” he said.
Kindiki said politicians should learn to respect both senior and junior leaders if they wanted to remain in politics for a long time.
“Fanya siasa yako, uza sera yako, usijisifie ati uko mrengo tofauti utuso ndugu yako,” he said.
The Deputy President said he had refrained from insulting people he had worked with, even when their political fortunes changed.
He said leaders should know how to work with those above and below them, warning that disrespecting colleagues and senior leaders could shorten their political careers.
“Ukijua kukaa na wakubwa wako na wadogo wako utakaa miaka mingi na utatawala miaka mingi,” Kindiki said.
He added: “Lakini ukikuwa mtu wa kudharau rais, wenzako, mtu wa ujanja, ukora hautakaa.”
Kindiki said he had made a personal decision not to insult anyone regardless of the political differences between them.
“Mimi nimesema iwe nani siwezi tusi mtu yeyote,” he said.
He also asked politicians to remember that attacks directed at them could hurt their families and parents.
“Na nimewaambia sio mimi mnatusi, kuna mtu hana wazazi? Si kila mtu ako na wazazi hata kama aliaga, so wao ndiyo walituleta duniani? So nimewaambia hawa mnatusi ni wazazi wangu, sio mimi,” he said.
Kindiki’s remarks come amid renewed political exchanges among leaders positioning themselves ahead of the 2027 General Election.
He called for a shift from personal attacks to issue-based politics, saying leaders should concentrate on explaining what they would do for voters.
The Deputy President said he would continue following advice from elders and avoid unnecessary political confrontations.
He maintained that political differences should not become personal battles, urging leaders to respect one another even when they belong to opposing political camps.