President William Ruto is reportedly on the brink of dropping Labour Cabinet Secretary Dr. Alfred Mutua from his Cabinet, with sources close to State House revealing deepening frustration over his failure to deliver the Kamba vote — and a growing sense that the former Machakos Governor has become politically irrelevant in Ukambani.
Speaking exclusively to Channel 15 News, a senior UDA official based in Lower Eastern revealed that Mutua has come under sharp scrutiny for his inability to consolidate the region, despite being the most senior Kamba figure in Ruto’s Cabinet.
“The President expected Mutua to be the political big man of the Kamba within government. But he has failed. He’s invisible on the ground and ineffective in mobilization,” the insider stated.
In the 2022 General Election, Ruto managed less than 25% of the vote in Ukambani, with Raila Odinga and Kalonzo Musyoka sweeping the counties of Kitui, Makueni, and Machakos. Mutua’s entry into Kenya Kwanza and subsequent Cabinet appointment was viewed as a strategic counterweight to Kalonzo — a plan that has evidently not worked.
Channel 15 News has exclusively learnt that Ruto had given Mutua a soft mandate: deliver a stronger Kamba vote base ahead of 2027. Now, the President wants nothing less than to triple his numbers in the region — and doubts Mutua can deliver.
To worsen his standing, Mutua was completely absent from the just-concluded government-backed youth and women empowerment blitz rolled out across Kamba counties — a campaign that Deputy President Kithure Kindiki led with full government backing.
Kindiki, whose Tharaka community borders Kitui County, has been embraced in Kamba land and even branded as one of their own, thanks to his boots-on-the-ground approach and tight coordination with local stakeholders.
But in a shocking twist, the real engine behind the campaign wasn’t Mutua — it was UDA Lower Eastern Coordinator and Mwala MP, Engineer Vincent Musyoka Kawaya, and Livestock PS Jonathan Mueke, who dominated events in Kitui.
“Mutua is a whole CS, but it was Kawaya and Mueke — both junior in rank — who were given the reins of the most visible government campaign in the region. That tells you all you need to know,” a Machakos-based UDA youth mobilizer told Channel 15 News.
While Kawaya, despite being a ‘mere MP’, emerged as a key face of the program, PS Mueke firmly planted the government’s flag in Kitui — symbolizing the shifting power dynamics within Kenya Kwanza’s Ukambani strategy.
Meanwhile, Mutua — a known social media politician and showman — has gone quiet. Once active online, he has avoided posting about government activities in the region and remains conspicuously silent, even as other leaders rally the ground.
“You’d think he’s on sabbatical. His silence online and offline is deafening,” quipped another UDA insider.
In addition, former UDA chairman and PSC Commissioner Johnson Muthama has gone missing in action politically, further worsening Ruto’s political footing in the region. Speculation is now rife that Muthama may even be warming up to the opposition as 2027 approaches.
Repeated efforts by Channel 15 News to obtain a response from Dr. Mutua were unsuccessful. The CS did not answer our calls nor respond to WhatsApp messages sent to his official contact.
With pressure mounting and Ukambani slipping through Kenya Kwanza’s fingers, insiders now say a Cabinet reshuffle is looming — and Mutua may be among the first casualties.
As Ruto looks to rebuild his political base in the region, one thing is clear: Alfred Mutua’s days in the Cabinet may be numbered.
