When the dagger is hidden in the lining of your own coat…

If there’s one piece of wisdom that’s travelled generations in this part of the world, it’s this: “Kikulacho ki nguoni mwako.” It simply  translates that whatever eats you is in your clothes.

This week, it came wrapped not in metaphor but in a direct shot from Francis Kavyu, the Minority Leader in the Machakos County Assembly — aimed squarely at his namesake, Deputy Governor Francis Mwangangi.

In what may go down as the most dramatic Francis-on-Francis exchange since the days of Saint Francis and the wolf, Kavyu had no time for niceties.

“If you want to be Governor,” he advised Mwangangi with a diplomatic smile, “use the ballot. Not midnight meetings.”

Kavyu claims the DG has been a little too informed lately — like when the EACC came knocking at Governor Wavinya Ndeti’s doors at Kinanie and the Deputy, allegedly, was already adjusting his tie and picking out a suit for the swearing-in. Not just any suit. A “Governor’s Suit.” Ironed, starched and waiting.

Now, Machakos watchers know that the Deputy Governor walks a fine line. In public, he’s seen loyally at Governor Wavinya Ndeti’s side — whispering here, nodding there, often clapping first. But behind the scenes?

Sources say he mutters. A lot.

He grumbles about not having a defined role. He sulks about not having a budget. He fumes that his office is more of a decorative accessory than an engine of government. But when the cameras roll, he plays the loyal lieutenant — perhaps too well.

So when Francis Kavyu took to the  floor and accused his fellow Francis of fanning the flames in the speaker-Governor feud, it wasn’t so much a shock as it was confirmation.

“He is present in all these things,” Kavyu declared, “yet pretending to be absent.”

Whether Mwangangi is truly plotting or just brooding with a pen and no power, the message from Kavyu is simple: Stop hovering. Step out of the shadows. Or step into the ring like the rest of us.

For now, Francis Mwangangi may wish to recheck the stitching on his coat — because if the betrayal is indeed coming from within, it just might be tailored.

Stay Anchored!