Kenya’s President William Ruto has introduced mandatory fasting for all State House workers.
In the new changes which were introduced on Wednesday, March 1, all State House workers will not be allowed to eat anything nor carry food to work.
It was widely reported that the changes would be imposed on all State House staff regardless of their religion.
When William Ruto won the 2022 general elections to become Kenya’s fifth president, local and international media were awash with discussions of Ruto as an “evangelical president.”
The Head of State has painted his leadership to be one deeply entrenched in religion by attending several thanksgiving services in various parts of the country.
Since he took office on September 13, 2022, the president has predominantly graced the prayer meeting in the Mt Kenya region as well as the opposition strongholds.
During his time in campus for his undergraduate education, Ruto was an active member of the Christian Union. He also served as the Chairman of the University of Nairobi’s choir.
The introduction of prayer and fasting every Wednesday comes just days after a survey revealed that more than half of Kenyans believe the country was headed in the wrong direction.
The survey conducted by research firm Info track between February 21 to 24 covering all 47 counties showed that more than 62 percent of Kenyans believe the country is not moving in the right direction.
Out of 2149 Kenyans who were interviewed, 73 percent attributed poor governance to the high cost of living, high taxes, and high unemployment rate.
Others cited poor governance from leaders (4 percent), bad politics (3 percent), calamities such as drought and poverty, corruption, poor education quality, poor infrastructure, and unequal distribution of jobs.
However, with prayers and fasting, president Ruto hopes that he will bring the country back to its lost glory.
