Lands Cabinet Secretary Alice Wahome has called on former President Uhuru Kenyatta to cease what she described as interference in President William Ruto’s leadership. She urged the retired Head of State to offer Ruto the same support Ruto extended to him during his presidency.
Speaking at a consultative forum for Community Health Promoters and village elders from Kangema and Kahuro sub-counties, Wahome argued that political competition should not persist after elections at the expense of national unity.
She maintained that Ruto supported Kenyatta throughout his presidency and that the former Head of State should reciprocate by respecting his successor’s mandate and allowing him to govern without political confrontation. Wahome questioned why a retired president would engage in political battles with a sitting Head of State, asserting that the end of a presidential term should mark a transition to a different role in national leadership.
“Nauliza former president wetu, Uhuru Kenyatta, aache kuingilia ndugu yake William Ruto. Hakuna haja ya retired president fighting a sitting president, because at no time will he be elected. Because he has finished his term,” Wahome stated.
The Cabinet Secretary also argued that Kenyatta should have supported Ruto after he was declared the winner of the 2022 presidential election, emphasising that political rivals should respect electoral outcomes and prioritise the country’s stability. She cited the late former Prime Minister Raila Odinga as an example of political reconciliation, noting that despite competing against Ruto for the presidency, Odinga later agreed to work with him.
“Hata Raila aliona ni vizuri ku-support the current president. That is statesmanship. Mpinzani wako akawa rafiki yako kubwa,” she remarked.
The CS further called on leaders and residents of the Mount Kenya region to continue engaging with the national government, arguing that the region had benefited from development investments under Ruto’s administration. She highlighted housing projects, markets, Mau Mau roads, and Technical and Vocational Education and Training institutions as government initiatives that should be completed, adding that the region had received its fair share of national resources.
“The entire Mount Kenya region has received its due share from Ruto’s administration. We have not been left behind. Our people have no reason to be persuaded otherwise in terms of political direction for 2027,” Wahome affirmed.
She encouraged the region’s leaders to embrace opportunities within the administration, particularly under the broad-based government arrangement, which she said was uniting political leaders and regions previously divided by electoral competition.
According to Wahome, the opposition will struggle to dislodge Ruto from the Presidency, and the region should take a stake in his regime.
“Hawa watu watahangaika sana kushindana na William Ruto uchaguzi wa 2027. The energy that our president has demonstrated, since he was a minister, and when he became a deputy president, is unmatched,” she said
Wahome maintained that Kenya should remain a multiparty democracy but called for a more respectful political environment, urging leaders to reject insults, name-calling, and political hostility.
She said competition for leadership should not undermine national cohesion, insisting that political differences must be managed in a way that allows Kenyans to remain united beyond election periods.
