Ruto assassination claims won’t stop our meetings, ministers say

What you need to know:

  • Information Cabinet Secretary Joe Mucheru and his Industry, Trade and Cooperatives counterpart Peter Munya said the meetings were sanctioned by President Uhuru Kenyatta to discuss development projects in the Mt Kenya region.

  • Mr Mucheru rubbished claims that the meetings — the latest one held on Tuesday — were aimed at plotting Mr Ruto’s assassination.

  • They were on Monday questioned by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) over the alleged threats to Mr Ruto.

Cabinet secretaries accused of plotting to assassinate Deputy President William Ruto remained defiant Friday, vowing to continue holding their meetings.

Speaking separately, Information Cabinet Secretary Joe Mucheru and his Industry, Trade and Cooperatives counterpart Peter Munya said the meetings were sanctioned by President Uhuru Kenyatta to discuss development projects in the Mt Kenya region.

NO RIFTS

Mr Mucheru, who spoke in Kiritiri, Embu County, during the launch of a Constituency Innovation Hub Friday, rubbished claims that the meetings — the latest one held on Tuesday — were aimed at plotting Mr Ruto’s assassination.

Besides Mr Mucheru and Mr Munya, other ministers who have been attending the meetings include Sicily Kariuki (Health) and James Macharia (Roads). They were on Monday questioned by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) over the alleged threats to Mr Ruto.

“We are just doing our jobs and we will continue holding meetings. In fact, we met with Nyanza leaders the other day, but nobody seems to have an issue with it. It is only a problem when we meet Mt Kenya leaders. It is purely political,” Mr Mucheru said in a press briefing.

He had, in an address to the public earlier, lamented that they were being attacked for pushing for development projects in the region.

He maintained that there are no rifts in the Cabinet following the meetings.

“There is no rift in the executive. Not that I know of. We have a job to do and we are working together towards that,” he said.

Agriculture CS Mwangi Kiunjuri, who hails from the central region, has distanced himself from the meetings, saying he had no knowledge of them.

QUESTIONING

“The meeting was successful,” Mr Munya said Friday day, adding, “Our aim is to try to ensure services are delivered to the population.”

“We have a list of issues picked locally which we are addressing, including water, roads and electricity. What we do is tracking implementation and accelerating,” he went on.

He said the DCI was yet to contact him again about investigations into the assassination claims following their questioning on Monday.

He added that neither President Kenyatta nor Mr Ruto had talked to him about the issue.

Asked if the claims could split the Cabinet, Mr Munya said, “Everybody in the Cabinet has his or her mandate and has a boss who is the President.” The Cabinet, he said, also operates under committees, one headed by Interior CS Fred Matiang’i and a technical one headed by Principal Secretary Karanja Kibicho that handles issues before they are brought to the Cabinet.

“The government has been functioning well because of structures established by the President,” Mr Munya said.

He wondered why nobody was questioning the meetings Mr Ruto was allegedly holding at the Weston Hotel in Nairobi with his allies.

“Only the President can stop our meetings as he is the one who has told us to address issues affecting our people,” said Mr Munya, acknowledging that he normally chairs the sessions.

 Reporting by Nicholas Komu, Lucas Barasa and Ndung’u Gachane