National government trying to intimidate governors, says Ruto

Bomet County Governor Isaac Ruto. [PHOTO: STANDARD/FILE]

BY KIPCHUMBA KEMEI

BOMET COUNTY: Governor Isaac Ruto has said the bashing of governors would not intimidate them into stopping campaigns for the national government to increase budgetary allocations to counties.

“The hullabaloo has been created by senior Government officials to intimidate us to stop the calls for increased allocation for counties. No amount intimidation will stop us,” he said and added that governors were committed to developing their counties and the country.

At a news conference in Narok Monday, Ruto also said there were plans to kill devolution the way the senate was killed in 1963 and accused the Jubilee administration of not being committed to the implementation of the constitution to the letter.

“We are aware of plans to kill devolution the way the senate was done away with in 1963. Those in the Government who think we don’t command respect and we are not accountable should hold rallies in our jurisdictions to test that,” he added.

Ruto who is also the chairman of the Council of Governors asked senators to stop harassing governors for what he termed as “flimsy issues”, adding that the way they were behaving was like power has gone into their heads.

Senate, he claimed, had abdicated its responsibilities and was now acting like a Kangaroo court, saying despite lack of adequate funding from the national government, governor were striving to improve the living conditions of the people they represent.

He asked the Deputy President William Ruto to leave him to perform his duties and dared him to visit Bomet for a popularity contest. The DP, he said would be ashamed.

“The DP should rise above petty politics of fighting governors. There better things he can do rather than planning to demean governors. He should also use his and state money wisely instead of using it funding a few members of the county assemblies and political brokers’ to fight me,” he said.

He also asked the parliament majority leader Aden Duale to stop intimidating nominated members of the County Assembly (MCAs) with expulsion for failure to support the Government, saying he should concentrate in his duties.

“Duale should know that there are different levels of governance. He is so drunk with power to the extent of failing to know that he has boundaries,” said the outspoken governor.