By Samuel Ouma
Kenya’s President William Ruto, on September 13, 2023, marked a year in office as the fifth president of the East African nation.
Ruto has developed an international image as an environmentalist and fighter for the reform of global financial institutions. However, millions of Kenyans associate his name with resentment and sorrow. They have even dubbed him Zakayo, the biblical tax collector, for overtaxing people.
When Ruto took office, the country had high expectations amid growing political heat and high living costs since he vowed to improve the lifestyles of many Kenyans living below the poverty line.
President Ruto has failed to fulfil his commitment to making living more affordable for all Kenyans. Compared to the preceding regimes, most Kenyans are suffering under his leadership.
Ruto’s government introduced a controversial Finance Bill Act 2023 that doubled the value-added tax from 8 to 16 per cent, adding more miseries to struggling Kenyans.
In addition, Ruto instituted a tax system that requires workers to pay a 35% income tax for the top-earning individuals, a 1.5% housing levy, a 2.7% NHIF deduction, and a 2.5% National Social Insurance Fund (NSSF) deduction.
For the first time in history, fuel costs in Kenya surpassed Ksh. 200 per litre under Ruto’s leadership. The cost of basic products and services, including food and public transportation, has increased due to the new fuel prices.
The Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority ascribed the sharp rises in petrol and diesel prices mostly to the surge in global crude oil prices, which caused the landed price of diesel, for instance, to climb by about 20 per cent.
Kenya’s inflation also hit 8.25 per cent compared to 6.61 per cent during the same period in 2022.
On public debt, Ruto has been on a borrowing spree despite accusing his predecessor, Uhuru Kenyatta, of burdening the country with unnecessary borrowings.
The debt increased to Ksh9.63 trillion (US$65 billion) in the first seven months of the new administration. This includes Ksh4.54 trillion (US$30.6 billion) in domestic debt and Ksh5.09 trillion (US$34.4 billion) in overseas debt.
These figures show that under the Kenya Kwanza (Kenya First) government, so far, the total borrowing was Ksh933 billion (US$6.3 billion), with Ksh176 billion (US$1.2 billion) sourced locally and Ksh757 billion (US$5.1 billion) sourced outside.
Despite vowing to combat corruption, the vice has torn apart Ruto’s administration. The Kenya Medical Supplies Authority (KEMSA) corruption scandal is one of the most severe scandals that has rocked Ruto’s administration. Mismanagement and graft saw the state-owned corporation lose billions of shillings.
Furthermore, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) dropped high-profile corruption cases against those the administration wished to install to positions, casting doubt on Ruto’s capacity to address the country’s rampant corruption.
The ODPP justified the withdrawal of the cases, citing a lack of evidence. However, those individuals were acquitted since they were Ruto’s close friends.
“The regime promptly appointed these individuals to the government, a stark contradiction to the pledge to uphold the rule of law. Corruption remains at the core of this administration’s operations,” said the civil society.
Ruto committed not to interfere with the independence of institutions during the elections. Contrary to his promise, institutions such as the judiciary, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, the Kenya Revenue Authority, the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC), and the National Land Commission are now dancing to Ruto’s tune.
The Kenyan leader is also accused of bribing opposition legislators to interfere with the opposition’s oversight role.
Several elected officials have abandoned the opposition and joined the administration, making it impossible for them to criticize the faults of Ruto’s government.
“You cannot keep buying MPs with the country’s money. Why don’t you have enough lawmakers if you were elected? You forced your way into power and are now using money to purchase people since you know that the parliament contains opposition MPs. MPs may be purchased, but not all Kenyans.
On police brutality, Ruto swore not to utilize the police to settle political scores, as past governments had done. This was not the case since Ruto’s administration used police to disperse opposition supporters protesting high living costs and harsh taxation.
Human rights groups reported many fatalities during these protests. The cops also injured thousands of other people.
In this regime, police killings have become the norm, with President Ruto openly condoning these extrajudicial executions and praising the individuals accountable for them.
For instance, the civil society claimed that between March and August 2023, they had tracked down over 75 instances of extrajudicial executions and forced disappearances.
“It is becoming apparent that there has been a reconstitution of a police killer squad that has been targeting innocent Kenyans. The deployment of police to suppress protests was perceived as an endorsement by the political leadership to employ excessive force, including injuring and killing protesters,” stated the civil society.
The Kenyan President vowed to form a small government in his manifesto, and he has been creating positions for his friends and supporters. For example, he appointed 50 Chief Administrative Secretaries, a post the Court said was unconstitutional. He also established the post of Prime Cabinet Secretary.
During his inauguration, Ruto pledged to work for all Kenyans, even those who did not vote for him. On the contrary, tribal nominations have been prevalent, with many public positions held by members of two communities.
On press freedom, the media has been under heavy fire. High-ranking government officials have been caught on video abusing and threatening journalists and media outlets.
Ruto has also broken his pledge to offer opportunities for youth. Young people were overlooked during governmental appointments, and many were unemployed. In March, the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) reported that the number of jobless Kenyans had increased to 2.97 million. The number is projected to climb due to enterprises shutting and retrenching due to an unfavourable business climate.
He further promised that his administration would revamp the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) so that all Kenyans may be enrolled as beneficiaries. He said that the government will assist Kenyans who cannot pay the monthly charges. However, despite the passage of one year, nothing has been accomplished.
Even while he has failed in certain areas, he has also succeeded in others. He launched the Hustler Fund to generate employment and stimulate economic growth.
The program, launched on November 30, 2022, provides loans to people, groups, and enterprises at a single rate of 8% per year. The report shows that over eight million Kenyans have applied for Hustler Funds.
He also instituted fertilizer subsidies to boost agricultural output. The price of a 50kg bag of fertilizer dropped from Ksh7000 (US$47) to Ksh3500 (US$24) and subsequently to Ksh2500 (US$17) as a result of the subsidies.
Ruto also appointed the six judges rejected by the former President Uhuru Kenyatta.
*Culled from October issue of PAV Magazine
