Activist and politician Reuben Kigame on Wednesday declared interest to unseat President William Ruto in the 2027 General Election, even as police barred him from holding a rally.
Police stopped Kigame from holding a planned rally in Kenyatta market, Nairobi, where he intended to unveil his candidature for the presidency.
He claimed that police revoked the permit for the rally despite giving him clearance on July 14, only to rescind their decision four days later.
Kigame’s efforts to address a press conference in a nearby hotel were also thwarted after the hotel's management declined his request.
The Standard could not independently verify the claims at the time of going to the press.
"In the next election, Dr Ruben Kigame will be on the ballot vying to be the sixth president of the country. That is a constitutional right. That is my right as a citizen. Unfortunately, there are people who think it is their right and not mine," he said.
The back and forth with the authorities, comes weeks after the Kenya Revenue Authority slapped Kigame with a Sh20 million tax demand hours after he filed a petition in court seeking to prosecute security chiefs over accusations of sanctioning extra-judicial killings, abductions, enforced disappearances, torture and systemic suppression of peaceful protests.
"I charged them for shooting and maiming and abducting Kenyans," he said, terming the frustrations meted on him by the State as a witch-hunt meant to silence him.
"They continue to prevent me, to scatter every effort for me to ascend the presidency. And it is obstacle after obstacle after obstacle," he added.
This is the second time Kigame will be making a stab at the presidency after he failed in his first attempt in the 2022 elections, after the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) declared him unfit to run. He has maintained he was unfairly treated.
He moved to court to challenge IEBC's decision, in a case that is "yet to be heard and determined to-date."
Kigame pledged that his leadership will "focus on the philosophy of human dignity, justice and values," which he believes will help dismantle corruption, implement the constitution and empower the Kenyans.
"If you have stolen from the public; grabbed their land that people are denied the right to housing and owning property; promoted tribalism, we will fight all that to reclaim our country and start a fresh," he stated.
He also took a swipe at President Ruto for turning his guns on Members of Parliament, accusing them of corruption, saying he (Ruto) should clear the log in his eyes before pointing fingers at others.
"It is not a matter of statement. It is a matter of action. If it is true that MPs have been bribed, then there must be a briber. A bribe must be from somebody, meaning the bribe has come from a higher office," he said.
