How Ruto has turned State House into an auction arena

For many Kenyans, a meeting with President William Ruto at State House entails smiling all the way to the bank.

That is thanks to the monetary inducement offered to different delegations, a matter that is now hardly a secret and which essentially trashes the government’s commitment to fighting corruption.

Over the last month, a number of delegations have paid Dr Ruto a visit at his official residence, walking home with a few thousand shillings, money that could well be the sole motivation for attendance.

While it is not strange for Heads of State worldwide to host different people at their official residences, as many do to recognise their country’s achievers in different fields, Ruto’s meetings, according to critics, have come out as driven by ‘free’ money.

And so such meetings have grown in popularity, with different persons jostling to reap from offering some kind of assurance that the ruling Kenya Kwanza administration is somewhat popular.

The State House meetings usually precede Ruto’s visits to different regions. They are also meant as engagement platforms between the Head of State and persons from different sectors, who could include politicians, farmers and teachers, as was the case yesterday.

Ruto has often attracted scrutiny over non-essential expenditures that persist despite an austerity order he issued in the wake of last year’s youth-led protests, with the Auditor General questioning the disbursement of Sh5.03 billion for unnecessary events in a report for the 2023/2024 financial year published six months ago.

Ten thousand teachers had their turn at the State House yesterday, where they presented a myriad of grievances and received an equal number of assurances. Throughout the nearly five-hour engagement, many chanted “two-term,” a slogan that implies Ruto would be re-elected for a second term as president.

The image created is that of an auction, where the “two-term” chant is exchanged for cash, much to the detriment of the taxpayer, whose pockets have been milked dry in a move justified as necessary to help the country ease its debt burden.

A trip to the State House, criticised by the opposition as the centre of corruption and bribery, carries the benefit of anything between Sh2,000 to Sh10,000 for the ordinary Kenyan, at least according to unverified claims by politicians.

 “Corruption is being practised in the highest office in the land in broad daylight,” former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, who has repeatedly encouraged delegations against being ‘short-changed’ by receiving anything less than Sh10,000, said in a recent televised interview. “The deputy president (Kithure Kindiki) is carrying money in sacks, bribing women and young people to say two-term.”

The sacks in question are the amounts of money Kindiki has been dishing out through “empowerment programmes,” which, observers have noted, have exposed the government’s inability to craft tangible solutions to unemployment, resorting to tokenism.

Months before Gachagua had made the claims, Nakuru lawmaker Samuel Arama was captured in a video clip that went viral on social media, handing cash to members of a team that visited the State House in Nairobi

“Mdosi amesema tuwanunulie lunch. Kila mtu ni Sh10,000 (The boss has said we should buy you lunch. Everyone gets Sh10,000,” Arama is captured saying, although he does not reveal who this boss is.

He goes on to say that no one should claim they received a lower amount, implying that MPs had been handed the money by someone else when he said: “Kama mheshimiwa mwingine atakata ni shauri yao (If any other MP undercuts another group, it is their problem.”

Ian Horsefield, a lawyer and political analyst, said that many people would be more inclined to attend the said meetings on the promise of monetary gain.

“Handouts are the currency of Kenya’s politics. It is the power politicians have over the electorate,” he said, terming an inducement of a few thousand shillings as “worth the while” of the respective delegations.

Horsefield described the president’s engagements as a “coy way of campaigning,” adding that it reflected badly on Kenya’s political culture.

“What it shows is that the Executive is failing and the government has to resort to handouts to buy the loyalty of Kenyans,” said the lawyer.

Mukuruweini MP John Kaguchia concurred, faulting the president for directing resources to non-critical issues when key sectors such as health and education were starved of funding.

“Unfortunately, the president has abandoned development as the key component of persuading Kenyans and has resorted to giving handouts to them for their support,” said Kaguchia

Before he hosted teachers, Ruto met a delegation from Murang’a County on Friday. A day earlier, he met another from Kisii in a meeting attended by former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, and another with members of the Kenya Tea Development Agency, to whom he handed a Sh2.65 billion cheque.

Ruto often describes such meetings as successful and more tilted towards ensuring that the government tailors development projects to the priorities of different regions.

“We are charting a new course; one of bold, visionary leadership that transforms lives and unites our nation,” the president said after meeting some residents of Murang’a.

Jane Wanjiru, one of those who attended the Friday meeting, said the president enumerated the development projects that his administration was undertaking in the county even as he urged them to support him.

“The president highlighted the projects in Muranga, such as 10,300 affordable housing units worth Sh23 billion, road development projects worth Sh3.5 billion, modern markets worth Sh2.3 billion, electricity connections for 10,000 households costing Sh850 million and two modern stadiums at a cost of Sh1.5 billion,” said Wanjiru, a former nominated ward representative.

On his part, Muranga County Assembly Speaker Johnson Mukuha said the meeting aimed to take stock of the development projects that were being initiated in the County.

“These projects mark a bold step towards inclusive growth, job creation, and improved livelihoods for our people. Together with the county government’s partnered projects, this progress is steering Murang’a firmly towards prosperity,” he said.

Former Muranga Governor Mwangi Wa Iria maintained that the huge number of attendees was a testament that the people were supporting President Ruto’s administration.

“The outcome of the visit shows that Muranga is deeply supporting President Ruto, and this indicates that the region will overwhelmingly re-elect him in 2027. For now, we are focused on service delivery, and that is why the leaders and the electorate visited the President for a briefing on what was being done in their areas,” he said.

Interviews also revealed the element of inducements. Benjamin Kamau, a youth leader from Muranga town, said members of the public were ferried using buses from as early as 3 am at Mukuyu market, located on the outskirts of Muranga town.

“We were later facilitated with Sh10,000 each, as leaders convinced us on the importance of supporting the Kenya Kwanza administration to continue receiving development projects and other opportunities from the government,” Kamau said.

He said the attendees were picked from youth groups, women leaders, opinion leaders and grassroots leaders who were tasked to preach Ruto’s gospel in the restive Mt Kenya region. The Sunday Standard could not independently verify his claims.

Last month, when Ruto met boda boda operators at the State House, attendees, like Dickens Kamau Otieno, claimed they had been given Sh2,000 to attend the meeting and asked to pose for photos with motorcycles to create the perception that they were theirs.

Such revelations show that the meetings do not come cheaply. Going by the meeting with boda boda riders attended by roughly 15,000 people, some Sh30 million was possibly splurged on the day. That excludes the amount spent on food and refreshments, which is usually awarded to an outside catering firm.

The figures are higher when pricier delegations are involved, such as the teachers hosted yesterday, who reportedly took home Sh10,000 each, meaning more than Sh100 million was spent on the event.