Labour Cabinet Secretary Alfred Mutua has publicly challenged Wiper Democratic Movement leader Kalonzo Musyoka to retire from active politics, accusing him of presiding over four decades of stagnation in the Ukambani region despite holding some of the highest offices in the land.
Speaking at a funds drive in Machakos Town on November 30, 2025, Mutua said the former Vice President has no moral authority to continue seeking leadership when he failed to transform Ukambani during his long tenure in government.
“Kalonzo Musyoka has been in public service for over 40 years—as MP, minister, Vice President, and everything in between—yet when you travel across Machakos, Kitui, and Makueni, you still see the same dusty roads, the same water shortages, the same poverty he met in 1983,” Mutua told a charged crowd. “It is time for him to rest. His time is up. We cannot keep recycling leaders who practise politics of poverty while the people suffer.”
Mutua, who served as Machakos Governor from 2013 to 2022 before joining President William Ruto’s cabinet, declared that he is launching a political revolution to dislodge Kalonzo as the undisputed kingpin of the Kamba community.
“This is not personal; it is about development,” Mutua said. “The people of Ukambani deserve leaders who deliver tarmac roads, industrial parks, reliable water, and jobs—not leaders who only appear during campaigns with empty promises and envelopes. I am starting a revolution to free our people from the politics of handouts and poverty.”
The Labour CS listed projects he claims were stalled during Kalonzo’s era, including the Konza Technopolis land issues, the delayed Machakos-Kitui road dual carriage, and the perennial water crisis in Makueni despite billions allocated over the years.
“Kalonzo was Vice President for five years, he was Minister for Environment, for Education, for Foreign Affairs—positions where he could have directed billions to Ukambani,” Mutua continued. “Where are the factories? Where are the universities he built for our children? All we see are the same complaints every election cycle.”
Mutua’s broadside comes barely a week after Kalonzo declared he will run for president in 2027 on a Wiper ticket, vowing to unite the larger Eastern region and form strategic alliances across the country.
In a quick rejoinder from his Tseikuru home in Kitui County, Kalonzo dismissed Mutua’s attacks as the tantrums of a political turncoat. “Alfred Mutua is a project of State House sent to divide Ukambani,” Kalonzo told journalists. “He was elected Governor on my Wiper ticket, then defected to Ruto for a cabinet job. Now he wants to lecture me on development after serving only one term? The people of Ukambani know who has stood with them through thick and thin.”
Wiper Secretary-General Shakila Abdalla accused Mutua of betraying the community that propelled him to power. “Mutua built his political career on Kalonzo’s back, then ran to Kenya Kwanza when he lost the Machakos gubernatorial race in 2022,” Abdalla said. “He has no moral standing to talk about development when his own legacy in Machakos is unfinished stadiums and stalled projects.”
Political analysts say the public spat signals the beginning of a fierce battle for Ukambani’s political soul ahead of 2027. University of Nairobi lecturer Professor Mutakilwa Musyimi described Mutua’s move as a calculated gamble. “Mutua is banking on the youth and middle class who are tired of the old guard,” Musyimi said. “But Kalonzo still commands loyalty among the rural masses and the older generation. This will be a battle of development records versus historical loyalty.”
Machakos Governor Wavinya Ndeti, a Kalonzo ally, urged Mutua to focus on his cabinet duties instead of divisive politics. “As a serving CS, he should be uniting Kenyans, not tearing Ukambani apart,” Ndeti said during a church service in Kathiani.
Mutua, however, insisted his revolution is unstoppable. “I am ready to tour every corner of Ukambani to show the people the truth,” he declared. “2027 will not be about who shouts loudest or who has been around longest. It will be about who can deliver water, roads, and jobs. The era of political kingpins is over.”
The exchange has set the stage for what observers predict will be one of the most intense regional political contests in the run-up to the 2027 general election.
