Ruto absent as Uhuru meets political leaders
Deputy President William Ruto was again missing in action as President Uhuru Kenyatta invited six political party leaders to State House on Thursday where they jointly lauded the success of the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) Constitution of Kenya (Amendment) Bill.
Those invited include opposition leader Raila Odinga, Musalia Mudavadi, Charity Ngilu, Kalonzo Musyoka, and Moses Wetangula.
DP Ruto is not a leader of a political party but nevertheless, his absence at such a historic event was loud and telling.
“Today, on behalf of a grateful nation, we convey our immense gratitude to all our County Assemblies for their monumental support for this Popular Initiative. Their bold action sets the foundation upon which Kenya shall advance inter-generational equity, realize gender parity, guarantee equal opportunities for all, and give each Kenyan a bigger slice of our shared prosperity,” State House spokesperson Kanze Dena said in a statement.
“As we embark on the next stage in realizing the First Amendment, we urge all Kenyans to build on our renewed unity and greater political consensus for the enduring benefit of the nation we all hold dear. BBI represents a once-in-a-generation break from the past; to resolve many longstanding national challenges that hold us back from realizing a united and prosperous Kenya for all.”
The DP’s absence comes at a time he has missed a number of key State events, including a recent meeting between President Uhuru Kenyatta and high-ranking civil servants, including Cabinet and Principal Secretaries.
The DP is also on record indicating a possible change of constitution is not a ‘priority’ of the country at the moment.
This event as President Uhuru Kenyatta recently publicly dared his Deputy to resign from government other than criticizing it from within. The DP responded a day later, saying he would not resign.
Ruto has since criticized what he termed as an appetite for piling debt within the government.