Why you can't write off Ruto in Mt Kenya as 2027 contest nears

President William Ruto addresses residents after inspection of the Mau Mau Road Lot 1A and Lot 1B in Lari, Kiambu County, on April 5, 2025. [PCS]

Kenyan politics is such transient business that writing on it is best avoided. I have been in this land long enough, watched the rough and tumble of politics, that I now live by the Mandago principle, keep politics in the lungs.

But this week's visit to Mt Kenya by President Ruto is one of those political events where silence can end up being too loud. Prior to the visit, most pundits, including many who support the President, had written him off in Mt Kenya.