In a bizarre and controversial directive, Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has urged families in the Mt Kenya region to have at least six children each, promising to reinstate the "Linda Mama" maternal health program if they support his 2027 presidential bid.

Speaking at a dowry ceremony in Kiambu County, Gachagua framed the call for a population boom as a strategy for political survival. "I am directing you to seriously consider giving birth to at least six children per family," he told the crowd, linking the region’s demographic numbers directly to its voting power. The statement has reignited the debate on the intersection of reproductive rights and ethnic mobilization in Kenyan politics.

Baby Boom for Ballots

Gachagua’s logic is simple: numbers don’t lie. He argued that the influence of the Mountain is waning due to lower birth rates and that the only way to secure the region’s future seat at the high table is to "re-populate." To sweeten the deal, he pledged to bring back the popular Linda Mama initiative—which provided free maternity care—implying that its return is contingent on his ascension to the top seat.

"Tomorrow looks brighter," he assured, dismissing concerns about the high cost of living that deters many young couples from having large families. He appealed to the "enterprising nature" of the Kikuyu community, suggesting that they can work their way through the expense of raising half a dozen children.

• The Promise: Gachagua vowed to make education free and restore health subsidies, painting a utopia that awaits if the region heeds his call to multiply.
• The Context: This rhetoric taps into deep-seated fears of political marginalization in Central Kenya, using demography as a weapon of defense.

A Controversial Stance

Critics have been quick to point out the dissonance between Gachagua’s demand and the economic reality. With unemployment soaring and the cost of basic commodities hitting the roof, asking families to expand for political gain seems out of touch. Furthermore, making essential health services like Linda Mama a campaign bargaining chip rather than a right has raised eyebrows among health activists.

Gachagua, however, remains undeterred. For him, the womb is a battlefield, and the babies born today are the soldiers of tomorrow’s voting blocs. It is a stark, old-school approach to power that prioritizes quantity over quality of life.