Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has dismissed social media reports that Cleophas Malala has defected from the Democracy For The Citizens Party (DCP).
Speaking over the weekend, Gachagua explained that Malala fell ill after hosting the Malala Super Cup in December and requested time off to recover.
Gachagua accused President William Ruto’s allies of spreading fake rumors about Malala.
“Cleophas Malala is a bold leader and a man of principle. Malala was in Kakamega for the Malala Super Cup, after which he fell seriously ill and asked me for permission to rest for a while before returning to party affairs.
“But these Ruto’s people are stuck; their work now is just spreading rumors,” said the former Deputy President.
Gachagua also dismissed claims of his allies defecting from DCP to join President Ruto’s camp, saying those leaving were moles and are returning to where they belong.
He emphasized that the DCP party is intact and none of his allies are defecting to other camps.
“If there were people who were Ruto’s spies within my party, we already knew it was only a matter of time before they revealed where they stood.
“Within my team, we knew who the Ruto spies were. DCP is intact, no one is leaving,” Gachagua stated.
Further, Gachagua said he plans to remove all politicians within his camp who he claims are acting as spies for President Ruto’s camp.
“This is the year I want all those people who were sent by Ruto out; I want to remove all of them. I have started removing them one by one,” Gachagua added.
The former DP’s clarification comes after a section of social media users alleged that Malala had defected from Gachagua’s camp for President Ruto.
Malala’s last public appearance was on December 31, 2025, when he graced the Malala Super Cup tournament finals in Kakamega County.
The former Kakamega Senator was notably absent as Gachagua hosted his allies for a three-day retreat on the Coast over the weekend.
Malala joined Gachagua’s Camp after he was kicked out as the UDA Party Secretary General in 2024.
In May 2025, after launching the DCP party, Gachagua appointed Malala as the Interim Deputy Party Leader.
