Ruto Defiant: Disregards Media Criticism, Highlights Progress
President William Ruto and his vice president Rigathi Gachagua defended their Kenya Kwanza government on Saturday, dismissing claims of broken promises and citing 20 accomplishments during their eight months in office.
The government stated in a list read by Mr. Gachagua and swiftly disseminated by the State House that it has done its best and deserves applause.
Dr. Ruto and Mr. Gachagua accused journalists of bias, reiterating the allegation that the media supported opposition leader Raila Odinga, who was supported by former president Uhuru Kenyatta, in the August 2022 presidential election.
“My assistant Rigathi tells the truth, but it’s like playing the guitar for a goat. Those to whom he speaks never hear. Because their candidate lost, they are writing all of these negative things about us, the President stated.
“We pardon them, but they need to stop being angry. The election has concluded. Your candidate may win in the future, perhaps in 2037. Stop the disorder. We seek to unify the populace. And I pledge that we will work together, respect each other, and unite the people.”
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Mr. Gachagua had many more things to say.
During a celebration for Roads Principal Secretary Joseph Mbugua in Nyandarua County, the DP stated, “I will present the 20 accomplishments of the President so that you can carry them in tomorrow’s headline if you have the courage.”
“President Ruto has fulfilled more than fifty percent of the campaign promises he made. He has four years and four months left to fulfill his obligations.
Dr. Ruto welcomed debate on his accomplishments, comparing it to a church choir that “is not an interruption of the sermon, but an essential component of it.”
According to him, Sh29 billion has already been borrowed from the Hustler Fund, and 16 million Kenyans have saved Sh1.5 billion.
Dr. Ruto added that seven million Kenyans utilize the Fund regularly.
Mr. Gachagua stated that the President appointed six judges to the Court of Appeal, adding that former president Uhuru Kenyatta had blocked the appointment of the judges.
According to the Democratic Party, the government has increased funding for the Judiciary by Sh4 billion.
Mr. Gachagua stated that the Kenya Kwanza administration’s appointment of an independent accounting officer, who is not a member of the Office of the President, to give the National Police Service financial autonomy was “a major accomplishment.”
He lauded the subsidized fertilizer program meant to increase food security, stating that more than five million farmers across the country registered.
Also included on the list were the port operations of Mombasa.
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Mr. Gachagua deemed it a monumental accomplishment, as the port operations had been relocated from Naivasha, Nakuru County, to Mombasa.
He also stated that economic zones have been established in the counties of Naivasha, Busia, Kirinyaga, Uasin Gishu, and Mombasa.
According to the DP, Kenya Kwanza’s recruitment of 30,000 teachers for public schools is the highest number in the nation’s history.
He stated that President Ruto’s pet project, the Housing Fund, would provide thousands of Kenyans with adequate housing.
Mr. Gachagua stated that 36,000 units are under construction and that 41 of 47 counties have allotted an additional 4,000 acres.
Several of the “achievements” on the list read by the Deputy President are, however, proposals pending in Parliament, such as the Finance Bill 2023.
It has implemented programs, such as the removal of subsidies and government-to-government oil agreements, whose effects have not yet been fully felt by the average Kenyan.
Mr. Gachagua stated that a 2-kilogram packet of maize flour sold for Sh230 in September of last year, and that the price “has decreased to between Sh155 and Sh185 in many stores and supermarkets.”
Importing goods through the Kenya National Trading Corporation, according to him, has helped stabilize the price of essentials.
However, only 20% of Kenyans consume processed unga; the remainder are primary producers.
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Earlier, President Ruto was in Kiambu County, where he was urged to ensure a return of the Mwai Kibaki economic moment of 2002 to 2013 “to silence the daily-growing noise of difficult economic times.”
The President was the honored guest at the centennial celebrations of Limuru Girls High School, where Kiambu Woman Representative Anne wa Muratha stated that the nation requires a rebirth on the economic front.
She stated, “We would love to have you as our President for the next ten years if you can help us deal with the economic turmoil.”
Ms. Muratha stated that she hopes what the Ruto presidency is experiencing is comparable to what President Kibaki encountered upon assuming office in January 2003.
“It is comparable to how we raised a ruckus during the first days of Kibaki’s presidency when his administration was said to lack direction. Ten years later, we requested that he continue as president and continue his good work.
Kibaki, the nation’s third president, devised the Vision 2030 plan.
The plan calls for Kenya to have a middle-income economy by 2030. During the presidency of Kibaki, the nation’s gross domestic product grew significantly.
Kibaki also improved the national budget’s internal system of revenue generation.
By the time he left office in 2013, tax collections had increased threefold.
The Kibaki administration sought bilateral and multilateral agreements that would expand export markets and combat market imperfections.
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Kimani Ichung’wa, the leader of the majority in the National Assembly, stated that President Ruto is laying the groundwork for Kenya to regain its Kibaki-era memories.
Mr. Ichung’wa stated that this first step is the Finance Bill of 2023, which is not as bad as has been portrayed.
“Only the negative aspects are being discussed, while the positive aspects have been ignored.”
He stated that the President ensured the price of maize flour decreased from Sh230 when he took office on September 13 of last year.
“The Finance Bill of 2023 establishes a 6% Housing Fund to be recovered equally by employee and employer. It is a form of giving back to society,” he explained.
The privileged should help the less fortunate live in decent housing and obtain employment.
President Ruto stated that his government would hire an additional 35,000 teachers and increase the budget for technical trainers from Sh5.2 billion to Sh10 billion.
He recommended implementing the Housing Fund.
He termed the levy “mandatory patriotism” and stated that the employed would assist the unemployed in earning a living.
“We intend to construct 200,000 homes annually. These homes will employ one to two million young people. During a Sunday television interview, he stated, “I don’t see why anyone with a job would have a problem contributing to a national scheme to help the less fortunate.”
Mr. Gachagua echoed this sentiment in Nyeri County on Friday.
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Mr. Ichung’wa stated that the Finance Bill has a bottom-up orientation “since it seeks to increase taxes on those earning more than Sh500,000 per month.”
“They are only required to contribute an additional 5% as Pay As You Earn. It targets the privileged to assist those at the base of the pyramid. “Not every Kenyan earns that much,” he stated.
Dr. Ruto warned government contractors not to be “cheeky”
“In me, you have a person who will whip you into transparency and accountability,” he said.
Dr. Ruto, according to Kiambu Governor Kimani Wamatangi, “will become the best president Kenya has ever had.”
“Eventually, Kenyans will realize that we did not gamble. We recognize you as a productive worker. “There are those spreading rumors about your qualifications,” said Governor Wamatangi.
You will never lack loyal and honorable people in your government, as you are our man.
Kenya still remembers President Ruto’s time as Cabinet Secretary, he added.
He stated that Dr. Ruto will “outperform Kibaki, and all we need is patience and patriotism.”
“Even the Kibaki moment did not come like instant coffee,” the Kiambu county administrator stated.
Ruto Defiant: Disregards Media Criticism, Highlights Progress
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