Former Member of Parliament for Nandi Hills Alfred Keter has challenged President William Ruto and his administration over the surging levels of dissatisfaction among most Kenyans due to the high cost of living. If the results of the recent opinion polls carried out on President Ruto’s performance are anything to go by, then Kenyans are in for a rough ride economically, Mr. Keter warned.
Opinion polls and political pundits are predicting that if President Ruto fails to deliver on his 2022 electoral pledges, then Kenyans will rally around a single compromised presidential candidate in 2027 to revive the economy. Names that have cropped up as compromised Presidential candidates for 2027 are of Wiper party leader Kalonzo Musyoka and ANC party leader, Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi. are expected to rekindle the Narc 2002 moment in 2027.
Analysts say that the attacks against President Ruto by Mr Keter caught many by surprise, the cheering by the crowd over the broken promises left many even more dumbfounded. Keter lost the Nandi Hills seat in the last general elections after he was allegedly ‘robbed’ of his victory in the UDA nominations. He contested as an independent candidate garnering 18,037 votes against the UDA’s candidate, Bernard Kibor, who garnered 23,503 votes. Despite the UDA wave that was sweeping across the length and breadth of Rift Valley, Mr. Keter lost by a mere 5,000 votes.
At the funeral, no one had expected Mr. Keter to make such a speech before a huge UDA party brigade who watched and listed pensively as the former legislature bravely and boldly took the president head-on. After the funeral, Keter mocked Kenya Kwanza leaders after the burial, “I want you to show me some petrol stations for Kenya Kwanza and petrol stations for people from Azimio.”
What is worrying the president’s team is that the crowd seems to have turned wild against the UDA-affiliated speakers who had attempted to justify the high cost of living and defend President Ruto’s performance. Analysts say that Mr. Keter’s brand of politics has once again endeared him to the electorate and that his chances of winning back the seat in 2027 are very high since there will be no more UDA wave in the Rift Valley.
