The rivalry between President William Ruto and his former deputy, Rigathi Gachagua, once again played out in public as the Head of State and his predecessor took to the podium to address the congregants, leaving Gachagua out.

The event, which brought together former President Uhuru Kenyatta, President Ruto, Gachagua, and Deputy President Kithure Kindiki, was attended by hundreds of visitors, mostly Catholic faithful from across the country.

However, while Uhuru Kenyatta, Ruto, and Kindiki were handed the opportunity to address the congregants, the former Deputy President only received recognition but was never allowed to speak.

Despite arriving early at the ceremony, Gachagua chose to sit in the regular section, avoiding a separate tent that had been meant for the Very Important Persons (VIPs) such as the Head of State and other senior government officials.

Incidentally, despite arriving at the venue after the former DP's arrival, both the former Head of State and Ruto avoided greetings with Gachagua, depicting the extent of the political enmity between the two.

The controversy began when Embu Governor Cecily Mbarire who was the host, invited Kindiki to address the congregation, who then invited Uhuru Kenyatta, then Kindiki came back to the podium to invite President Ruto to finalise the protocol before the podium was handed back to Catholic Bishop Peter Ndung'u.

During the speeches, the former deputy president stayed quiet and only stared as the senior government officials made their remarks. It is yet to be known whether the snub was intentional.

Moments after the event, Gachagua, flanked by his Mt Kenya political allies including Githunguri Member of Parliament Gathoni Wamuchoba walked away despite calls by a section of the congregation for him to deliver a speech.

Today's incident comes barely a fortnight after Kithure Kindiki was sworn in as the new deputy president, replacing Rigathi Gachagua who was impeached by the Senate in October this year.

Meanwhile, former President Uhuru, during his speech, called on Kenyans to embrace each other, co-exist peacefully and stop tribalism. “We should pray for peace in Kenya. Let us pray for cooperation between Kenyan citizens and leaders. Let us stop tribalism and let us love each other,” Uhuru told the congregants.

“We are all Kenyans. Kenya cannot go forward if there’s conflict amongst citizens and when there is no respect for each other. Leaders, respect the citizens, and the citizens will respect you,” he added.

President Ruto who addressed the gathering moments after his predecessor, acknowledged Uhuru as his ally, before appraising him about the progress made by the government in implementing various projects launched during the previous regime including the Competency Based Curriculum (CBC), the Affordable Housing Project and the Universal Health Coverage.