Former Interior Cabinet Secretary and presidential hopeful Fred Matiang'i has accused President William Ruto's administration of quietly giving away Kenya's vast mineral wealth through opaque concession agreements, challenging the government to publish every mining licence and reveal the beneficiaries of what he described as secretive deals.
Speaking during an interview with the standard, Matiang'i claimed Kenya was sitting on enormous mineral wealth capable of transforming the economy and lifting millions out of poverty, but alleged that a lack of transparency in the allocation of mining concessions was denying citizens and host communities their rightful share of the country's natural resources.
"Publish every mining licence. Publish every concession agreement. Tell Kenyans who owns what and under what terms those resources were allocated," Matiang'i said.
"These resources belong to the people of Kenya. There is absolutely no justification for hiding these agreements from the public,’’ he added.
The former Interior SC alleged that before the 2022 change of government, the State had completed one of the country's most comprehensive geological mapping exercises, identifying commercially viable mineral deposits across several counties.
According to Matiang'i, the exercise established the location, quantity and potential value of Kenya's mineral resources and was meant to guide the next phase of exploration before investors were invited.
"The mapping had already been done. We knew where the minerals were and what potential they held,"he said.
He explained that the next stage was supposed to involve truthing which is verifying the geological findings on the ground, before prospecting could determine commercial viability and pave the way for transparent concession agreements.
"What was supposed to follow was truthing, prospecting and then transparent concessioning. Instead, licences are being issued in secrecy and Kenyans have no idea who is getting them or on what terms,"he said.
Matiang'i argued that bypassing those stages had denied Kenya the opportunity to negotiate better agreements and maximise returns from its natural resources.
"Truthing confirms what is in the ground, prospecting determines its commercial value and only then should concessions be issued. That process protects the country and ensures Kenyans get value for their resources," he said.
He challenged the government to release the geological mapping report, saying county governments and Parliament had been excluded from decisions involving resources found within their jurisdictions.
"Publish the mapping report. Every governor should know what minerals exist in their county. Parliament should scrutinise that report before these resources are allocated to private investors," he said.
Matiang'i further alleged that politically connected individuals had established companies abroad before returning to Kenya disguised as foreign investors to secure lucrative mining concessions.
"People are registering companies overseas, coming back disguised as foreign investors, acquiring mining licences and then selling those licences for huge profits. That is organised plunder of our national wealth," he claimed.
He challenged Parliament, oversight agencies and anti-corruption institutions to investigate the allocation of mining licences, insisting that Kenya's extractive sector should operate under the highest standards of transparency and accountability.
At the heart of his criticism was the argument that Kenya's economic challenges stem not from a lack of resources but from poor governance.
"If these resources were managed properly, within five years there would be nobody living below the poverty line in Kwale. The same would apply to Narok. There would be enough money to build schools, hospitals, roads, water projects and transform those counties completely," he noted.
Drawing comparisons with countries that have successfully managed natural resource wealth, Matiang'i said Kenya should establish systems that ensure revenues are invested for future generations rather than benefiting a few politically connected individuals.
"Natural resources should enrich citizens, not politicians and their business associates,"he said.
He also criticised the continued export of raw minerals, arguing that Kenya was losing thousands of jobs and billions of shillings by failing to process its minerals locally.
"Why should we export our minerals in raw form? Process them here. Create industries here. Create jobs here. That is how nations become wealthy," he said.
Questioning the management of the country's oil resources, Matiang'i wondered whether residents of Turkana had been adequately informed about agreements governing exploration and production.
"Do the people of Turkana know who is exploiting their oil? Do they know the agreements that have been signed? Do they know what they are supposed to benefit?"he posed.
Matiang'i also broadened his criticism of the Kenya Kwanza administration, accusing it of presiding over widespread corruption, weakening public institutions and compromising national security.
He accused the government of facilitating fraudulent allocation of public and community land, saying influential individuals were exploiting weaknesses in land administration to dispossess ordinary Kenyans.
"There is fraudulent allocation of public land and corrupt acquisition of community land. The level of crime around land is mind-boggling.If I become President, there are land allocations I will revoke because they were acquired unlawfully and unfairly,’’ he said.
The former Interior Cabinet Secretary also raised concerns over what he termed the reckless issuance of Kenyan identity cards and passports to foreigners, warning that the practice threatened the country's sovereignty.
"Issuing IDs and passports to foreigners amounts to surrendering our national sovereignty.These documents give access to public services and rights that belong to Kenyans. From a security perspective, the implications are enormous,’’ he said.
He further alleged that foreigners were being registered as voters ahead of the 2027 General Election, describing the claims as alarming and calling for investigations.
"If that is true, then Kenyans should be asking who is registering them and for what purpose. You could end up having leaders elected by foreigners. That is extremely dangerous,"he said.
The former Interior minister also accused the Ruto administration of politicising governance instead of addressing issues affecting ordinary Kenyans.
"Everything has become political. There are matters of national security and governance that should never be turned into political contests," he said.
Despite his criticism of the government, Matiang'i declined to reveal who would eventually carry the opposition's presidential flag in the 2027 General Election, saying coalition negotiations were still ongoing.
"It is not my responsibility to declare who the presidential candidate will be. Coalition building requires patience, trust and difficult conversations. We will get there," he said.
"We hope this time Kenyans will not be conned again by politicians."
Matiang'i's remarks place the management of Kenya's natural resources, public assets and State institutions at the centre of his campaign message ahead of the 2027 General Election, arguing that transparency and accountability, not the absence of resources, will determine whether the country achieves broad-based economic prosperity.
The government has consistently maintained that it is implementing reforms aimed at attracting investment into the mining sector while ensuring Kenyans benefit from the country's natural resources. Matiang'i, however, insisted that the debate could only be settled through full public disclosure.
"If the government has nothing to hide, then publish every mining licence, every concession agreement and every beneficiary. Let Kenyans judge for themselves,’’ he said.
