NAIROBI, Kenya May 1 – President Uhuru Kenyatta has asked politicians including his deputy William Ruto to stop blaming him for the high cost of living in the country saying, “I am not in Ukraine”.
President Kenyatta, who spoke in Nairobi during celebrations to mark Labour Day, attributed the current situation to issues “beyond my control” like the Coronavirus pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
He particularly took a swipe at his deputy Ruto for what he termed as incitement of Kenyans and bashed him for deserting him in the hour of need.
“Instead of helping me find solutions to issues affecting our people, you are out there in the markets hurling insults and you call yourself a leader, yet you claim that you hold a senior leadership position,” Kenyatta said.
The Head of State who has since fallen out with his deputy hailed Azimio Presidential candidate Raila Odinga for joining forces with him in the interest of the country when they shook hands in March 2018.
Uhuru said that instead of blaming him, Ruto should have stepped down from his role and given him an opportunity to look for someone who would support him in addressing the country’s challenges.
“And that is why I thanked Raila Odinga, even though he had his own issues, he came to help me, and that is the truth of the matter. He (Odinga) knew this is not an individual problem but a global one,” he said.
President Kenyatta pointed out that insults and empty promises “will take the country nowhere but hard work.”
The fallout between President Kenyatta and his deputy began to play out in 2020 at the onset of COVID-19 when Ruto was not seen in government functions presided over by the Head of State.
But Ruto downplayed the scenarios until last year when it became clear that the two had parted ways.
Ruto is campaigning to succeed Kenyatta through his United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party that joined forces with Musalia Mudavadi’s Amani National Congress (ANC) and Moses Wetangula’s Ford Kenya to form Kenya Kwanza Alliance.
