President William Ruto has fired back at the Catholic Bishops for condemning his administration saying they should be careful lest they become victims of what they are accusing him of.
The Head of State was reacting to a stinging statement released on Thursday by the Catholic Bishops who took the Kenya Kwanza government to task over a myriad of grievances it blamed for Kenyans’ continued suffering.
The church, who he shared a cordial relationship with Mr Ruto during his campaigns for presidency has turned out to be his biggest critic.
The clergy protested against the rising burden of higher taxes, run away cost of living, corruption, a health sector in crisis, escalating human rights violations following abductions and killings believed to be orchestrated by state agents.
The Catholic bishops feel like instead of addressing the grievances raised by Kenyans, the government has resorted to lies, imposing punitive taxes and concentrating on misplaced priorities while the common mwananchi suffers.
In a message also directed at Kenyans in general and political leaders who have been critical of him in the past few days, the Head of State appeared defensive, calling for caution and facts while criticizing his administration.
Speaking on Friday at the Graduation ceremony of Tangaza University in Nairobi, Dr Ruto asked the clergy and leaders to work towards making Kenya a country they all can be proud of.
In apparent reference to the lies and broken promises he was accused of by the church, the president asked those pointing fingers at him and his administration to be factual.
"I want to urge everybody including the clergy that even as we engage in matters of public discourse and matters of great importance to Kenyans, we have to be careful to be factual lest we become victims of what we accuse others of doing,” said Dr Ruto.
In his advice to the graduates, President Ruto stated that opportunities are few and resources are limited, calling for visionary leadership that can inspire and coordinate effective responses.
“Now more than ever, the world needs ethically grounded leaders who serve boldly, work tirelessly and embrace accountability,” said President Ruto.
Dr Ruto’s sentiments came at a time when he is facing a backlash from every quarter for not fulfilling his campaign pledges.
The church, medics, leaders of the opposition, his former Deputy Rigathi Gachagua, teachers, council of Governors, rights activists and university students have all been raising various concerns which include unpaid salaries, unfair distribution of resources, corruption and incompetence in running the affairs of the country.
The move by the bishops appeared to have rattled State House which informed the firefighting that followed for the better part of Thursday and Friday.
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Immediately the Bishops ended their press conference, the government went into a defensive mode, with statements by state agencies raining trying to explain their side of policies which included a dispatch from the cabinet.
There was a statement by Health Cabinet secretary Deborah Barasa saying the government takes great exceptions to what she termed “misleading, erroneous and false statement” issued by the Catholic bishops.
Her Education counterpart Mr Julius Ogamba also denied reports that the education system in the country is in shambles saying they have taken every measure in implementing the recommendations of the Presidential working party on education reforms, and more especially on Junior Secondary Schools (JSS) and the Competency-Based Curriculum.
With the clergy and human rights activists on his neck over the frequent extrajudicial killings and abductions, the Inspector General of Police Mr Douglas Kanja also criticized the clergy for overlooking the measures taken by the service to address the cases of abductions, torture and killings that have occurred recently.
The IG noted that a specialized Missing Persons Unit and Gender desks were formed to address the issues. Further, he noted that the police have made 1,552 arrests countrywide whose cases are being pursued.
And in the cabinet dispatch which came in later in the evening, resident Ruto sought to reassure the country that his administration was on the right track noting that the country recovered strongly from the recent global shocks and domestic challenges.
He cited stable growth, falling food prices, record low inflation and a stronger shilling or the positive outlook.
The cabinet noted that there is a significant reduction in external debt service attributing this to the stabilization of the exchange rate at Sh129 after appreciating by almost 20 per cent earlier in the year.
The interest rates, according to the cabinet, are starting to fall leading to low domestic interest costs.
The government also claimed that inflation, which reflects the increase in prices overtime, had declined substantially to 2.7 percent last month, down from a high of 9.6 percent in September 2022.
According to the cabinet, the prices of various foods, particularly maize, beans and peas have decreased over the past year while a two-kilogram packet of maize flour which retailed at Sh176 a year ago is now going for Sh124.
To the government, every household can now access basic food requirements according to the government.
Currently, the country has 95.2 million 50kg bags of maize, 8.8 million bags of beans, 10.4 million bags of wheat and 2.1 million bags of rice in stock.
On sugar, the meeting noted that Kenya has, for the first time, produced enough to meet local demand. As a result, no sugar will be imported this year.
This was attributed to the subsidized fertilizer provided to farmers and improved management of the sector.
In the current hot potato in the country, the Cabinet also received an extensive briefing on the Social Health Insurance Fund, covering both successes and challenges.
The NHIF debt to health facilities was being settled with the government claiming that over the past month, Sh5 billion has been paid to hospitals, including faith-based, public and private institutions, to clear historical pending bills.
“The meeting was also told that more than 14 million Kenyans have registered with the Social Health Authority,” read the despatch.
The government also boasted of doubling its revenue with Kenya Revenue Authority’s collections growing by double digits. Tax revenue increased by 11.5 percent in the year to June 2024.
The Cabinet also approved the transfer of Amboseli National Park to the County Government of Kajiado.
This latest move by the government is a boost to the devolved units who have always wanted to have a piece of the share of the revenue coming from the national parks.
At the same time, the cabinet approved the upgrading of five technical training institutes to national polytechnics, increasing the number of National polytechnics from 23 to 28.
These include Michuki Technical Training Institute (TTI), Mitunguu TTI, Ol' lessos TTI, Nairobi TTI and Friends College of Research and Technology in Kaimosi.
