Uhuru blasts Ruto for eroding his key gains with 'untried, untested’ schemes

Speaking during the Jubilee Party Special National Delegates Conference (NDC) at Ngong Racecourse, Nairobi, Kenyatta listed successes in his regime, such as the Linda mama program, which, he said, were replaced by untried and untested projects by President William Ruto's administration.

As a result, he noted that Kenyans bear the burden as they wait for the new projects to work effectively. 

Launched in 2013, the Linda Mama program was a free health insurance program for pregnant women and their newborns, providing comprehensive services from antenatal care to postnatal and infant care, including immunizations and delivery. 

The program was, however, replaced by Linda Jamii, a revamped maternal care package under the new Social Health Authority (SHA) that is set to cover the entire maternal journey. 

"Today, many of the gains of the past have been eroded. Linda Mama and others have been replaced by new, untried and untested schemes. While we wait for these experiments to work, Kenyans suffer and our progress is dragged," said Mr Kenyatta.

"As we continue to dwell in rhetoric rather than progress, we repeat the mistakes of the past. Some of the truths we spoke of and some of the myths have become the nightmares that many are living with," he added while referring to his earlier warning to Kenyans about their political choices during the 2022 elections. 

The Jubilee party leader noted that the government should not use its resources to attack its citizens, but rather to better their lives. 

"This machine that we built was not meant to face the citizens. It was not supposed to be a source of fear and conflict with our citizens. Ilikuwa ya kulinda wananchi sio kuumiza," he noted. 

He lauded the youth for their vigour during the anti-Finance Bill 2024 protests and appealed to them to take up political positions and shape the country's future. 

"I have watched carefully beyond the noise of the past and admire the tribeless generation of our time. It is my hope today that some of us today give way so that the young ones with courage on the streets can use it to transform our country. You have the energy to get it," he pointed out. 

Further, the former president criticised the hustler-dynasty antics that flooded the 2022 election campaign season, citing that every Kenyan has an equal opportunity to vie for any position. 

"In the last general election, I endeavored to pass this message. Unfortunately, it fell on deaf ears and got lost in the noise of insults, myths, character assassinations on dynasties and hustlers," Uhuru remarked. 

"Hii story watu walisema ya hustler sijui dynasty. Ati kuzaliwa na single mother ndiyo qualification ya kuchaguliwa. Hapana. Leta sera. Kila mtu ako na nafasi ya kuongoza. Kila mtoto, uwe umezaliwa kwa nyumba ya matope ama dhahabu akona nafasi ya kuongoza nchi."

The former president noted that the Jubilee party would field candidates for all elective positions. He added that the party would also embark on a nationwide recruitment drive to strengthen its grassroots bases.

"Shida ambazo zilitokea hapo awali, watu wakiuza tikiti na mfuko kulingana na pesa wamepewa, hiyo imeisha. Transparency will be there in all the processes we shall follow," he stated. 

"Nitajitolea sasa kwa kuwa tunaanzisha recruitment drive, tutapatana na nyinyi, tuongee na nyinyi."