Kenya's Deputy President slams Uhuru Kenyatta over poor leadership

Kenya’s Deputy President has taken a swipe at his boss, President Uhuru Kenyatta over his decision to support the former Prime Minister Raila Odinga.

Ruto accused Kenyatta of his economic policies claiming that Kenya was heading in the wrong direction and that he will fix the mess within 30 days after being elected into office.

The statement was in relation to current Kenya’s public debt which has risen by $61.32 billion from nearly 17 billion dollars since Kenyatta assumed office in 2013.

Ruto was declared as the presidential candidate to his new outfit, the United Democratic Alliance party on Tuesday during a national delegation that brought in more than 5,000 delegates across the country.

He also accused Kenyatta of failing to honor his 2017 election promises and using state institutions to persecute political opponents.

Ruto’s fallout with Kenyatta began when in 2018, the former Prime Minister Raila Odinga made a peace truce popularly known as the handshake with the current President.

The handshake sparked speculation the two men had made a pact that would see Odinga succeed Kenyatta, a two-term president who cannot run a third time.

The two leaders also sought to expand the executive through proposed constitutional changes that would have potentially allowed Kenyatta to stay in power as a prime minister.