Why Ruto is now targeting Kalonzo ahead of 2027

President William Ruto has now declared an all-out, bare-knuckled war against Wiper Patriotic Front party leader Kalonzo Musyoka after making several unsuccessful attempts to woo him into his Kenya Kwanza camp.

The two leaders continued exchanging barbs yesterday, with the President scoffing at Kalonzo’s response to his criticism. Dr Ruto said the former Vice President and long-serving Cabinet minister had never built a road despite being in government for over 40 years.

Political analysts, however, argue that the President has decided to take on Kalonzo now after realising that he is likely to be his opponent in the 2027 presidential race.

Indeed, former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, currently the President’s harshest critic, has already indicated that Kalonzo is the most likely United Opposition candidate to face Ruto in the much-awaited polls.

“The biggest political threat to Ruto now is Kalonzo Musyoka, because he can appeal to voters across the country. Ruto’s anger reveals anxiety over Kalonzo’s growing ability to unite a broad coalition that could give him nightmares,” says Kevin Joab Lunani of DAP-K’s Trans Nzoia branch.

There are fears in the Ruto camp that Kalonzo could make inroads into the Mt Kenya region, which voted for Ruto almost to a man in the 2022 presidential race. That gives Kalonzo a commanding start, given that he also has sizeable support at the Coast and in Western Kenya, where he has the backing of Trans Nzoia Governor George Natembeya, DAP-K party leader Eugene Wamalwa, DCP Deputy Party Leader Cleophas Malala and Kakamega Senator Boni Khalwale.

As a result, Ruto has decided not to take matters lying down against one of his harshest critics. Most political pundits also opine that the President has chosen to take the fight to Kalonzo’s doorstep to test his strengths and weaknesses.

The President kicked off the exchanges in Kiambu on Sunday when, out of the blue, he launched a scathing attack on the opposition leader. He dismissed Kalonzo as someone who has held senior leadership positions over the past 40 years but did very little to transform the lives of the people he represented in Parliament, questioning what he could do for Kenyans as President.

“There are some people who have been dismissing what I have promised to do to make Kenya a developed country, yet they do not have any plan for citizens. How can we wait for someone who has never developed the road leading to his home, yet he has been in power for five decades?” Ruto asked.

“Together with his friends in the opposition, they have been arguing that the grand plan I have to make Kenya a developed country is not possible, yet they have done nothing over the many years they have been in power,” he said.

This week, the WPF leader joined his DCP counterpart Gachagua, Wamalwa and former Attorney General Justin Muturi of the Democratic Party to deliver a stinging attack on Ruto’s administration on the eve of Jamhuri Day.

They poked holes in various promises made by the President, terming them outright lies, and questioned how the money to be raised from the sale of public assets would be used.

Kalonzo said Ruto’s push for “alternative financing mechanisms” flies in the face of a Constitution that deliberately anchors public finance in transparency, parliamentary oversight and the fair distribution of burdens across generations.

“We have heard President Ruto claiming that the cost of living is falling, yet every Kenyan mother, every boda boda rider and every young hustler knows that is a blatant lie. The truth is written in the price of cooking flour, fuel, transport and rent,” Kalonzo said.

Political analyst Herman Manyora says Ruto was banking on Kalonzo joining his side, and it is now becoming clear to him that this will not happen, hence his decision to confront him head-on.

Manyora said Ruto’s allies did not expect the opposition to settle on Kalonzo as its flag bearer in 2027 and had not prepared sufficient ammunition to deal with him.

The analyst added that Kalonzo is the most experienced politician in the opposition, with over 40 years’ experience, and that with the backing of other opposition leaders, he is likely to make it difficult for Ruto to secure an easy re-election in 2027, as he had expected.

“It has now become clear to Ruto that Kalonzo is his competitor, one who does not carry much political baggage and could defeat him in the 2027 polls if he organises his campaign well. That is why he has decided to take him on head-on, to dissuade Kenyans from supporting him,” Manyora said.