Kabogo Accuses Uhuru Of Denying Him Presidential Award
Kabogo accused the former President of betraying him and trying to frustrate his political ambitions.
Marvin Chege 
Former Kiambu Governor William Kabogo on Monday, October 23 blew open the lid regarding his frosty relationship with President Uhuru Kenyatta to the point of leaving him out of contention for a presidential award.
Speaking during an interview with Spice FM, the firebrand politician accused the former President of betraying him and trying to frustrate his political ambitions.
To support his claims, Kabogo, who ran for the Kiambu Gubernatorial seat on The National Alliance (TNA) ticket in 2013, claimed he was sidelined after he was snubbed by Uhuru for the Elder of the Order of the Golden Heart of Kenya (EGH) award.
Elder of Golden Heart is a head of state commendation issued to statesmen including clergymen, athletes, journalists, politicians, technocrats and academicians among others.
Former President Uhuru Kenyatta with former Kiambu Governor William Kabogo at his house on March 8, 2021. /FILE
The award is conferred only by a sitting president of the Republic of Kenya and is the second-highest honour awarded by the Kenyan Government.
"I was friends with Uhuru Kenyatta and I thought I was also his friend. As we speak now, I don't have the medal that they gave to most governors (EGH).
"I did not get it. I was told at some point you need to buy the medal and I was like, what?" he lamented.
Kabogo also alleged that there were multiple attempts to scuttle his gubernatorial bid in 2013, claiming Uhuru, his party leader at the time, had quietly drummed up support for another candidate. That candidate was National Rainbow Coalition (NARC) candidate James Nyoro, the former Kiambu Governor.
"In 2013, they tried to drop me (from the gubernatorial race), the same Uhuru Kenyatta that I was working with," he lamented.
"In 2013, they gave Nyoro (James, former Kiambu Governor) a ticket under NARC and they put up a billboard at Muthaiga displaying Nyoro and Uhuru's faces."
In the interview, Kabogo also claimed that Uhuru's lawyer ended up representing Nyoro in court when Kabogo sued the party in response to a billboard promoting Nyoro that had been put up in Muthaiga bearing Uhuru's face and TNA branding.
The fallout would however expand to the following political campaign cycle where he accused the party of opting to pick Ferdinand Waititu.
"During Waititu's time, I complained to the now President (William Ruto). I tried to blame him and it got so heated because I never hide how I feel. I told him, 'You fixed me,' and he simply told me, 'William I can feel you but I know you know where your problems came from.'" he narrated.
In 2022, Kabogo alleged that Uhuru had already decided who he would support in the August elections of that year, given that Uhuru had never openly endorsed any candidate for President before the countdown to the elections when he threw his weight behind former Prime Minister, Raila Odinga. During his fallout with Ruto, almost all of Uhuru's allies supported Raila.
During a 2022 interview, Kabogo claimed that Uhuru privately referred to Raila as ‘The 5th’, a title that gained popularity when talking about the current president.
As late as 2021, the two leaders seemed to enjoy a close friendship after Uhuru visited Kabogo at his home at Iguta Paradise Homes along Kiambu Road
Details of the meeting remained scanty, with nothing being released to the public except the pictures, which led to speculation that Kabogo was preparing for a return to the political scene.
Kabogo later expressed intentions to run for the Presidency in 2022 under his Tujibebe Party but later withdrew from the race in favour of President Ruto who was the UDA candidate. Afterwards, he ran for the Kiambu Governor position which he lost to current Governor Kimani Wamatangi.
