BY WINSTONE MUSISI
The Kalenjin community on Saturday, January 8, 2022 offered their son Deputy President William Ruto their blessings to run for the presidency in the coming general elections.
In a ceremony held at the Eldoret Sports ground, along the Eldoret-Kapsabet highway in Uasin Gishu County, lawmakers told the DP to start crisscrossing various parts of the country in his quest to succeed President Uhuru Kenyatta in August.
The event was attended by more than 100 United Democratic Alliance-allied politicians from Rift Valley, Mt Kenya, Coast, Western, Nairobi, North Eastern, and Eastern regions.
Senate Deputy Speaker Margaret Kamar who is also Uasin Gishu Senator snubbed the much-publicized event alongside Kesses MP Swarup Mishra, Moiben MP Silas Tiren, and his Cherangany counterpart MP Joshua Kuttuny who are all allied to President Uhuru Kenyatta and ODM leader Raila Odinga’s handshake team.
Businesses came to a standstill in Eldoret town and its environs as hundreds of residents thronged the venue from as
early as 7am as security personnel took vantage positions in and outside the sports ground to ensure safety of the
attendees.
The elected leaders who graced the event included former leader of the majority in the National Assembly Aden Duale, former leader of Majority in the Senate Kipchumba Murkomen, and Musalia Mudavadi allied Senator Cleophas Malala who was given a rousing welcome during the mega rally.
In his acceptance speech, the Deputy President exuded confidence that he will clinch the country’s top seat in the August 9 General Election due to the popularity he enjoys among Kenyans.
He assured Kenyans that they will not regret electing him as the 5th President of Kenya.
“My top priority, in the event that I am elected the 5th President of Kenya on August 9, will be to complete the Big Four agenda we
started with the current Head of State,” he said.
He promised to lower the price of fertilizer from the current Ksh5,500 per 50kg bag to Ksh2,500 to enable farmers cut down on cots of production and increase yields.
“When I was the Minister for Agriculture under retired President Mwai Kibaki’s government, I made sure that fertilizer price was retailing at Ksh2,500 per bag of 50kg from Ksh6,000. I will do the same if elected as President come August 9th to save the farming community from exorbitant farm input ahead of planting season,” assured Ruto.
Ruto claimed that his competitors were jealous of his generosity.
“I have not appointed any politician to be an auditor of my accounts, so keep off my financial transactions,” said Ruto.
He said the country’s leadership will not be decided by a few rich people sitting in five-star hotels in Nairobi, but by the Kenyan voters.
He assured his supporters that they should not be worried over plans by certain people to steal his victory.
“We shall be vigilant against schemes by my critics to rig my victory after sensing defeat. There is no way we shall allow a few tycoons to impose a leader on Kenyans in the next polls,” he warned.