Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi has stated that securing the presidency requires more than just campaigning, and those who believe they can easily defeat President William Ruto will be surprised by the realities on the ground.
He says becoming president demands more than the mere sloganeering often employed during political campaigns.
Speaking in Butula Constituency, Busia County, during a meeting with UDA grassroots members, Mudavadi cautioned the opposition that winning the presidency is not an easy feat.
“People are busy dancing on top of podiums and engaging in sloganeering, thinking that this translates to winning the presidency. It takes more; it calls for well-crafted policies, a clear agenda, and a demonstrable track record to convince voters to elect you,” Mudavadi asserted.
He further elaborated, “The team that is busy moving from one county to another—today they are seen dancing in Busia, tomorrow they are busy in Kakamega, the following day you meet them in Trans Nzoia, then Vihiga and Bungoma—thinking they have won the presidency, I want to tell them they are only practising to keep fit. They are far from the realities of winning the presidency.”
The Prime Cabinet Secretary noted that President Ruto has achieved significant progress for the country, and his re-election is assured by his popularity, which is built on progressive policies, a strong development record, and national unity.
Mudavadi cautioned against those attempting to divide the country through ethnic pronouncements and propaganda designed to deceive Kenyans into believing that Ruto’s administration has not fulfilled its promises.
He criticised the opposition wing in the Western Kenya Region, which he said was boasting of visiting five counties in the region as an indicator of their grip on the presidency.
“Constitutionally, under the provisions of Article 138, a candidate shall be declared elected as President if the candidate receives more than half of all the votes cast in the election; and at least twenty-five per cent of the votes cast in each of more than half of the counties, which is 24 counties out of the 47 counties,” Mudavadi explained.
He declared that the unity between UDA and ODM, under the Broad-Based Government arrangements, represents the winning formula for the 2027 presidential election. Mudavadi revealed that the President would chair a joint UDA-ODM parliamentary meeting in Naivasha on Monday to outline a new roadmap for the nation’s future, both before and after the 2027 general elections.
“We are convening as Broad-Based leadership, both in the executive and in the two houses of parliament. Our Governors will also be part of this crucial meeting to be chaired by President Ruto. Our main agenda, among others, is to harmonise our manifestos, which borrowed heavily from each other pre-2022 elections. We want to plan ahead and focus on the future of our nation,” Mudavadi added.
“When Kenya Kwanza won, we didn’t push the opposition, then led by ODM as the majority party, away. We embraced them and brought them onboard under the leadership of the late Rt Hon. Raila Odinga to form a united front under broad-based. We were not selfish with the leadership of our nation. We wanted unity of purpose,” Mudavadi explained.
Mudavadi challenged the opposition to consider the votes garnered by the leading presidential candidates in the 2022 general elections, William Ruto and Raila Odinga, and think of the results that the unity between UDA and ODM will produce in the August 2027 polls. He predicted that the next general election would shock many with the margin of President Ruto’s victory.
“Take Ruto’s 7,176,141 (50.49 per cent) votes and Odinga’s 6,942,930 votes (48.85 per cent), then look at the current broad-based arrangement. Even if you take away 3 million votes from that total and give the numbers to the opposition, will this change anything?” Mudavadi remarked.
The Prime Cabinet Secretary emphasised that President William Ruto would secure a fair, transparent, and petition-free victory in the 2027 General Election through the democratic will of the people.
He called on Kenyans to turn out in large numbers in August 2027 and vote for Ruto’s second term, challenging the youth in Busia to register as voters to boost Ruto’s numbers.
“When we talk of a two-term, let us also emphasise a petition-free win for President Ruto. Raundi hii ni two term bila petition, two term bila petition” Mudavadi stressed.
He argued that those who wish to reverse the policies laid out by the Kenya Kwanza administration, and supported by the Broad-Based government, do not have the country’s best interests at heart.
“When you say you will reverse the policies that have led to the employment of an additional more than 76,000 teachers, the progress within the affordable housing programme, the gains in the health sector, the construction of roads and markets among other gains, what is your agenda for the future of this country? People want to come to Busia and tell you that they want to reverse the construction of Dykes at Budalangi and the removal of inter-border trade barriers between Kenya and Uganda. Are they meaning well for the people of Busia and Kenya?” Mudavadi questioned.
The Prime Cabinet Secretary highlighted that the dual carriageway of the Rironi-Mau Summit Road is planned to reach Malaba, as is the extension of the Standard Gauge Railway from Naivasha through Narok and Kisumu, aiming to link Kenya to Uganda via Malaba.
Mudavadi stated that these are some of the flagship projects that will open up the Western Kenya Counties, including Busia. He urged the people of Busia to consider such projects and grant Ruto a second term.
“We want to correct the mistakes that have been there during the previous regimes. Our people have been taking between 7 and 8 hours from Nairobi to Western Kenya counties. Now we want to change that. We want our traders and farmers to get their products for export at the port of Mombasa faster through the SGR. For over 63 years, we have had policies that have affected our cross-border trade, and we want to change. Our people in the border counties, including Busia, must benefit from these arrangements, and we need to always remember that Uganda is our biggest trading partner within the East African Region,” Mudavadi explained.
Mudavadi was accompanied by Busia Governor Paul Otuoma, Bungoma Governor Ken Lusaka, Kakamega Deputy Governor Ayub Savula, MPs Mary Emase, John Waluke, Fred Ikana, David Ndakwa, and Dan Wanyama. Also present were former MPs Sakwa Bunyasi and Alfred Agoi, along with Petronillah Were, the Deputy Head of Mission at the Kenyan Embassy in Addis Ababa, and Kelvin Lunani, UDA’s National Vice Chair.
