In the run-up to August 9, 2022, presidential election, political analyst Mutahi Ngunyi had been a strong critic of the then deputy president William Ruto.
At one point, Ngunyi, who worked as retired President Uhuru Kenyatta’s technical assistant even projected that the former Agriculture Minister would lose the presidential election to his main opponent Raila Odinga.
However, on Tuesday, September 13, William Ruto was officially sworn in as Kenya’s fifth president taking over the reins of power from now retired President Uhuru Kenyatta.
Following William Ruto’s inauguration, political strategist Mutahi Ngunyi changed his tune and heaped praise on Kenya’s President William Ruto.
Ngunyi, who worked as retired President Uhuru Kenyatta’s technical assistant in a statement on Thursday, September 15, said he worked with Ruto and that he will make a great president.
“I have worked with William Ruto in Board Room 6 at State House. This man will make a great President,” Ngunyi said.
Last week, Ngunyi speculated that a William Ruto presidency will last the maximum of two terms, and thereafter Rigathi Gachagua, Ruto’s deputy, would succeed him for another ten years, marking an exit in 2042.
On Monday, August 15, Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) chairman Wafula Chebukati declared William Ruto the president-elect.
According to Chebukati, the UDA presidential candidate garnered 7.1 million votes against his closest rival Raila Odinga of the Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Coalition party who scooped 6.9 million votes.
Ruto is taking power in a country heavily burdened by debt that will challenge his efforts to fulfill sweeping campaign promises made to Kenya’s poor, whom he has described as getting by on “stubborn hope.”
In his speech, he acknowledged that “clearly, we are living beyond our means.”
The President promised cheaper fertilizer as food prices rise and more affordable credit. He also vowed more money for the judiciary, financial independence for the national police from the presidency, and efforts to fight a drought in Kenya’s north that brings the threat of famine.
