Populist agenda can guarantee Ruto victory

The drumbeats for an impending referendum to change the Constitution are getting ever louder. Trial balloons from senior politicians allied to President Uhuru Kenyatta and Prime Minister Raila Odinga suggest that the referendum will create new state office positions to accommodate major ethnic groups. This scheme, most believe, is in part designed to deny Deputy President William Ruto the presidency come 2022.

Of course, all this could be hearsay. Or an elaborate ploy by Kenyatta’s camp to keep Raila distracted and to cool political temperatures as he works on securing his legacy after two terms in office. However, reactions to events by Ruto and those allied to him suggest that Kenyatta’s dalliance with Raila has come at his political expense. This has manifested itself as opposition to the Building Bridges Initiative.