Deputy President William Ruto in a
couple of months back has been largely associated with the United Democratic
Alliance UDA that has since been pushing for the hustler movement that has been
championing for a bottom-up economy.
Speaking to a local media house in
the country on Thursday, the deputy president admitted to fallout in the ruling
party Jubilee. A number of his allies were expelled from the party including
Soy Member of Parliament Caleb Kositany who was the deputy secretary-general of
the party.
“It is evident that we have
challenges at Jubilee House. The way we worked since 2013 is not the same way
we are working now. We worked as a pair from 2013, but a lot changed from
2017,” said Dr.William.
The deputy president has severally
claimed that there are plans to ouster him from the ruling party and
frustrations for him to step down as the deputy president. He has however
claimed no one would ouster him from the party. The meetings only meant for
lecturing and expelling members with no delegate meetings since 2017. He
refuted the existence of an opposition in the country.
“I was elected the Deputy President
of Kenya by Kenyans and not by Raphael Tuju. I work for Kenyans. The change of
guard happened after new players were introduced and my space was occupied.
Jubilee meetings became an avenue of suspending members from the party and
lectures. The entrance of new players in government thus brought a new
leadership style,” he further said.
The ruling party has had fracas and
rifts in their second term, alluding to the handshake and the Building Bridges
Initiative BBI, the big four agenda of the government took a back seat with the
focus being on the constitutional reforms and changes. The agenda furthered
with ODM party leader Raila Odinga and President Uhuru Kenyatta has seen the
deputy president look like an outsider as his allies said.
“The new players changed the
priorities as a party and our agenda shifted. The focus now was the change of
the constitution and the handshake drive. The space I occupied was taken with
new advisers taking in and it became urgent for the constitution to be changed.
Our agenda to create more jobs came to a standstill. The style of leadership
changed,” he further explained.
Dr. William Ruto disputed claims
that the hustler movement and philosophy are not about the division of the rich
and the poor. He argues that the people against the hustler narrative are the
ones coming up with the notion of division of classes between the rich and the
poor. Further eluding that he has never talked of the dynasty story. With
leaders from different political camps saying his talk on the dynasties is
dividing the country. Saying that the hustlers are also concerned with the
country’s growing debt. The 17 million Kenyans form a section of the population
that can reduce the continuous borrowing of funds through the bottom-up economy
adopted by big states.
“I have never talked of and
referred to any dynasty. The dynasty movement has been propagated by the same
people who are saying that the hustler movement is meant to bring division
among the rich and the poor. Raila Odinga has even referred to himself as a
hustler. Not even once has the hustler movement meant to bring division but
economic empowerment of the low-income generators in the country. Hustlers are
part of the Kenyan society and are concerned with matters of debt, cost of
living in fact, they suffer the most. As a government we need to support those
in sectors suffering as a result of the pandemic with a stipend so they can
afford a meal,” he said.
The Deputy President dismissed the
politics around the vaccines in the country by politicians as mere politics and
the focus should be on vaccinating the population to open up the economy.
Stating that the country should focus on getting any vaccine available and have
a vaccination campaign. He encouraged the inclusion of the private sector to
roll out the vaccines in the country.
“I have heard debates about Sputnik
being more expensive than AstraZeneca vaccine. The government policy is that
every Kenyan will be vaccinated free of charge. The single most important
program we must engage in is getting any vaccine we can find and have a
vaccination campaign. Not politicking around as have heard some prominent
leaders in the country are doing.” Said the Deputy President.
On his presidential bid, the Deputy
President talked of a backup of a huge movement of the ‘hustlers ‘alliance not
based on tribal alliances that have need dominance in the country. The change
will come from working with new ideas on how to change the country.
”I think I have ideas on how to
change Kenya. I want my competitors to come up with alternative ideas. Politics
in Kenya must be prosecuted on account of a plan, not tribal arrangement or
endorsement.” Said DP William Ruto.
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