Deputy President William Ruto has expressed his concern over Kenya’s political environment ahead of the August 9, presidential race saying there is a big threat to democracy and expression of free will in the country
Speaking at the Karson Institute for Race, Peace and Social Justice in Maryland, US, the deputy president appealed to the global community to intervene and help stop attempts by his bitter rivals to influence the outcome of the upcoming elections in which he is expected to vie for the presidency against Raila Odinga and others.
Ruto further expressed optimism that the will of people will prevail and that he will succeed the outgoing President Uhuru Kenyatta in the forthcoming August 9, General Election despite the intimidation he is currently facing from his bitter rivals.
“There is a lot of blackmail, intimidation, and use of criminal justice system to intimidate leaders to ask people to vote in a certain way. I am very confident that the will of the people of Kenya will prevail,” William Ruto said on Wednesday, March 2.
With less than 160 days to the much-awaited polls, the presidential hopeful noted that the biggest issues on the ballot as Kenyans prepare to vote are the democracy of the country and whether people have the opportunity to make their choices devoid of blackmail, threats, and intimidation.
“That is what encourages the current push by many Kenyans to say hatupangwingwi, meaning we want to make our choices without being choreographed, chaperoned, or intimidated,” he added.
While drumming up his bottom-up economic model to Kenyans living in the diaspora, the former Agriculture Minister further said that the 2022 presidential duel will be a contest between the current trickle-down economic model and his proposed bottom-up economic model.
He said his first role as the head of state will be to democratise and liberate Kenya’s economy from the bondage of a few billionaires to make it inclusive and bring everybody on board.
“There is a feeling our economy has been captured and brokered and become exclusionist and that’s why, in our push, we must democratize our economy, make it inclusive, and bring everybody on board and that’s the push that is going to inform elections in our country,” he said.
