Prof. Makau Mutua defends decision to work with Ruto despite past criticism

Speaking during an interview on Citizen TV, Mutua maintained that his past criticism of Ruto during his tenure as Deputy President was tied to the 2022 election season, where he openly supported the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) leader, Raila Odinga.

The professor, who was appointed by Ruto as the chairperson of Panel of Experts on Compensation of protest victims, explained that his op-ed was shaped by the competitive political environment whereby his focus was on magnifying his opponent's weaknesses. 

"It was related to a season, we're speaking in the context of an election and my candidate was Raila. In an election, you try to magnify the weaknesses of the other side," he stated. 

"As Professor Mutua, I don't determine elections, it's the people of Kenya. They decided to elect Ruto as the president. I'm a scholar of democracy. I've written a lot about different politicians across the years."

Mutua said that after the elections, ODM chose to engage with the president and contribute to his administration under a broad-based approach for the country's benefit. 

"The election finished and we engaged with the current president and decided to help him run the country and came on board. There's nothing wrong with that. People are dynamic and we only have one country. If this president fails, we as a country fail and we'll have to point ourselves. The choice of working with him is not something one should condemn," he remarked.

On a personal note, he described Ruto as a leader who is open to advice and characterised him as a leader who prioritises national interest. 

"What distinguishes politicians who have national interest at heart from those who don’t is the actions that they take when there’s a national crisis. The two leaders, Raila and President Ruto, are moving deliberately to address the concerns of Kenyans," he noted.

In his role as chairperson of the compensation panel, Mutua reaffirmed his commitment to addressing victims’ grievances. 

"We can never bring back the people we lost but what we can do is take that pain and try to respond in a way that gives economic meaning to your lives and dignifies you as a victim or relative of a loved one. We will also offer psychological counselling to those affected," he explained.

He added that the panel is overseeing compensation for fatalities, serious injuries and hospital bills to alleviate the pain that families have undergone by losing their loved ones. 

"We have also made recommendations to the relevant state bodies to either pass new laws or amend existing laws to clarify the right to assemble and picket," Muta pointed out.