DP William Ruto says he will not resign or be silenced

Deputy President, William Ruto [right] talks to Kwale Governor, Salim Mvurya during the burial of Sada Mgala at Kazandani in Kwale County. The late Sada is the mother of Kwale Governor, Salim Mvurya. 25th August 2021.[Omondi Onyango, Standard]

Deputy President William Ruto yesterday said he will not resign.

Ruto spoke hours after President Uhuru Kenyatta asked those dissatisfied with his government to quit.

He vowed to stay put in government despite pressure from his political rivals. 

The DP added that he will not be cowed by threats and intimidation from State officials he claimed were out to frustrate his presidential bid. 

“I am a man of vision and I have no space to retreat and the luxury to surrender,” Ruto told mourners at Rashia in Taveta after attending the burial of Mahoo MCA Ronald Sagurani who died of Covid-19.

Sagurani was elected on the Jubilee Party ticket and served as the assembly Minority Leader. Earlier, anti-riot police had a hard time stopping mourners from accessing the home of the deceased.

Security officials including those from General Service Unit (GSU) were deployed to ensure mourners adhered to Covid-19 guidelines. They barred some residents and leaders from attending the ceremony.

But Ruto claimed the funeral was disrupted because ‘some people’ did not want him to attend.

“I came to bury my friend who campaigned for us. It is shameful that my supporters and those of the deceased are being blocked from attending his burial. Time for chest-thumping, intimidation and humiliating others will end soon,” he said. 

The DP asked for forgiveness from residents blocked from attending the burial. “I am apologising on behalf of the government because those who disrupted the function were targeting me,” he said.

He accused proponents of the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) of advancing selfish interests at the expense of poor Kenyans. “We want to build a nation that leaves no Kenyan behind,” he declared. 

The DP used the opportunity to drum up support for his ‘bottom-up’ economic model, saying he had started a conversation that Kenyans were embracing.

He said the model will ensure the jobless and small-scale businessmen are part of the nation. Taita-Taveta Woman Rep Lydia Haika and Malindi MP Aisha Jumwa told mourners that the DP will not resign.

“President Uhuru Kenyatta and Ruto were jointly elected on a Jubilee Party ticket. The DP cannot resign unless the two resign together,” Haika said.

Jumwa said the DP will continue speaking for the voiceless despite intimidation and threats from some quarters.

President Kenyatta and Governor Granton Samboja sent their condolences to the bereaved family through Taveta MP Naomi Shaban and Nominated MCA Rose Shingira, respectively. 

The Deputy President was accompanied by Senator Johnes Mwaruma, MPs Andrew Mwadime (Mwatate), Jones Mlolwa (Voi), Danson Mwashako (Wundanyi), Kimani Ichung’wa (Kikuyu), John Njuguna Wanjiku (Kiamba) and former Taita Taveta governor John Mruttu, among other leaders.

Speaking earlier in Karen, Nairobi, before leaving for Taita-Taveta, Ruto said the flopped attempt to review the Constitution under BBI was unhealthy for the country.

“It was going to install an imperial president who would control the Judiciary, Executive and Legislature,” he said. 

“We thank God that the BBI failed. Let us not lie to ourselves and the people,” he added when he met a delegation Makueni County.