How MPs tore into Ruto's State of the Nation Address

Division rocked the House on Tuesday as lawmakers from across the political divide picked holes in President William Ruto’s State of the Nation Address delivered on Thursday last week.

While Ruto-allied MPs heaped praise on the Head of State’s forward-looking speech and “focused” plan to get the country to a first-world economy, his critics highlighted his misses, observing that the Head of State steered clear of the real issues affecting the country.

Kiharu MP Ndindi Nyoro criticised the Presidential speech for relying on inaccurate data, further wondering why Ruto did not focus on issues such as education and the country’s ballooning debt.

“I thought the speech would include the issue of debt because Kenya is currently borrowing Sh3.5 billion every day—unprecedented—and, besides that, we are borrowing illegally in the name of securitisation,” said Nyoro.

“I also thought education would feature because the speech was read at a time when our principals have received a circular to increase school fees for day scholars starting January. I want to rally the MPs in this House that we must not just watch as the fees for secondary schools are increased.”

A key issue that President Ruto swept under the rug, the MP said, was the pending confirmation of 20,000 Junior Secondary School (JSS) interns to permanent and pensionable employees.

Funyula MP Wilberforce Oundo also hit out at President Ruto’s administration and its burdensome taxes.

“When the President was campaigning and later came to address this House for the first time, one of the promises he made was to address retrogressive taxation and regulatory compliance…the jury is out there on whether this has been achieved.”

“…The number of taxes Kenyans are subjected to every day include PAYE ranging from ten to thirty-five percent, NHIF 2.7 percent, Housing Levy 1.5 percent, VAT at 16 percent, rental income tax, NSSF, etc. I don’t know whether we have finished addressing retrogressive taxes,” stated Oundo.

He also pointed out that despite the current regime’s promise to lower the cost of electricity, the cost of electricity was highest in Kenya at Sh28.66 (USD 0.221) compared to the African average of Sh17.38 (USD 0.134).

“We were promised quality education, but as we stand here, capitation has reduced from 22,000 to 16,000, making education more expensive…the cost of living is much higher, and households are not relieved as he claimed.”

Keiyo North MP Adams Korir, however, lauded the President for what he said was increased food production thanks to the availability of subsidised fertiliser.

“The President has also employed more than 76,000 teachers. If you go across the country, you will see houses coming up thanks to the President. He further elaborated on the intended construction of dams because he seeks to ensure that we get value for money as a country,” submitted Korir.

Leader of the Majority Party Kimani Ichung’wa hailed Ruto as a reformist who had engineered an economic turnaround under whose leadership the country would prosper. He cited affordable housing, roads, stabilisation of the Kenyan shilling, and the introduction of reforms in higher education as Kenya Kwanza’s notable achievements.

“Amidst all the economic pressures and peers across the region defaulting on their public debt obligations, we stood firm, and we continue to meet ours even with difficulty. The President’s speech was a true reflection of the journey we have walked for two years and an update of where our country is and where it is headed,” he stated.

Simultaneously, he chided the naysayers and the opposition, which has consistently accused the President of not being truthful and using the material day to “launch his re-election manifesto” rather than address the salient issues.

“…They (opposition) are clueless and very quick to sell negativity by telling us how this cannot be achieved, yet they are not giving us alternatives. As you criticise, you must also give alternatives,” added Ichung’wa.

Last week, during the third State of the Nation Address, President Ruto laid out a detailed blueprint for an economic turnaround to propel the country to a first-world economy, creating jobs and ensuring self-sufficiency through infrastructure development, while simultaneously calling for a new era of political unity.

The opposition has, however, since termed his 90-minute-long address as self-congratulatory and one that skipped problematic areas within his administration.