Ruto responds to Raila's fuel deal ‘exposé’
President William Ruto speaks during the official handover of the Maraga-led Police Taskforce Report at State House, Nairobi on November 16, 2023.
What you need to know:
- President Ruto says the government is not a broker in the deal but a mere guarantor.
- Head of State asks Kenyans not to shy away from questioning the Government.
The Government-to-Government oil deal was conducted openly and transparently, President William Ruto has said.
The President has also the deal was necessary to ease the pressure on the Dollar.
He pointed out that pressure on the Greenback had resulted in oil shortage in the country.
The President further explained that the government is not a broker in the deal but a mere guarantor for international oil firms to supply the crucial commodity for six months on credit.
“The international oil companies sell fuel directly to oil marketers in Kenya. The entire process is private sector-driven,” President Ruto said.
The President made the remarks on Friday evening during the closing of the two-day Government officials retreat in Nairobi. The meeting sought to assess the administration’s one-year progress.
The President said he is committed to running a transparent and accountable Government devoid of scandals.
“I want to assure them [the Opposition] that the fishing they are doing for a scandal in this administration, they are not about to succeed,” he said.
He, however, asked Kenyans not to shy away from questioning the Government saying they are ready to take useful feedback.
The Head of State noted that the Government will not use its foreign currency reserves to prop up the value of the Kenyan Shilling against the dollar.
He said the last administration used over $2 billion to keep an artificial rate of the Kenyan Shilling.
“This is a liberal market, we will do what we have to do, we will export more, manufacture more to strengthen our shilling,” he said.
