President Ruto's return to his 2022 promises exposes a painful gap in delivery. The government is yet to fulfil its pledge of irrigating 3 million acres and creating 1 million jobs for youth in manufacturing.
This isn't just about numbers; it's about lives left in limbo, families without a steady income, and a youth bulge turning into a ticking time bomb of unemployment. Leaders must own these failures instead of recycling old speeches.
Healthcare remains a glaring sore spot amid these broken vows. While politicians jet off abroad for treatment on the taxpayer's dime, ordinary Kenyans queue endlessly in underfunded public hospitals, facing medicine shortages and strikes. The hypocrisy deepens inequality.
Why promise universal health coverage when the elite bypass the system they claim to build? Recent reports of maternal deaths rising due to poor health facilities are alarming. We need accountability: restrict overseas medical trips to self-funded ones, forcing leaders to invest in local care.
Education, another cornerstone promise, fares no better. The government's push for competency-based curriculum sounded innovative, but without enough teachers, books, or even desks in rural schools, it's a hollow promise.
Over 2 million children are out of school, according to recent UNESCO data, fueling a cycle of poverty. As floods and droughts worsen due to climate change, parents can't afford fees or transport. Delivering on free education means real funding, not photo-ops at school openings.
High taxes are squeezing the life out of everyday Kenyans, the Finance Bill hiked VAT on essentials like cooking oil and sanitary pads, hitting the poor hardest while big corporations get relief.
Protests erupted last year over this burden, but promises of fair taxation ring empty as public debt balloons to over 70 per cent of GDP. With inflation at 5.7 per cent, hustlers can't hustle when every shilling counts. Leaders should prioritise tax reforms that protect the vulnerable and plug corruption leaks.
The recent anti-Finance Bill demos and Gen Z uprising highlight how ethnic division is a politician's desperate tool to distract from these failures.
But Kenyans are wiser now—social media amplifies the truth, uniting us beyond tribes. From Nairobi's streets to rural villages, the cry is for governance that works, not hand-outs or hate. Ignoring these risks leads to more unrest; embracing unity around real issues like jobs and services could rebuild trust.
Corruption scandals, like the ongoing Goldenberg echoes in modern procurement rackets, erode every promise made. Billions vanish into ghost projects while roads crumble and water projects leak funds.
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission needs teeth, not just headlines. Without cracking down, no irrigation dam or school will rise. It's time for lifestyle audits on all public officials to match their salaries with their wealth.
These unkept promises aren't abstract; they fuel despair in a nation full of potential. Kenyans deserve leaders who deliver, not deflect. Let's demand transparency, reform, and action, starting with holding 2022 pledges to account. The future depends on it.
Joseph Katiku Kioko, Nairobi
