- In Washington DC, Ruto is scheduled to meet officials of the Pentagon as well as the US Government National Security Council Advisory.
- He is also set to meet senior UK government officials and deliver an address at the prestigious Chatham House.
Image: DPPS
The National Assembly has provided air tickets for six MPs who will accompany Deputy President William Ruto on his 10-day official tour of the United Kingdom, United States of America and Qatar.
The DP is also accompanied by Amani National Congress leader Musalia Mudavadi, a member of Ruto's Kenya Kwanza alliance.
MPs Aden Duale (Garissa Township), Alice Wahome (Kandara), Owen Baya (Kilifi North), Beatrice Adagala (Vihiga Woman Rep), Kimani Ichung’wa (Kikuyu) and Soipan Tuya (Narok) notified Speaker Justin Muturi of the trip.
Parliament facilitated the MPs with air tickets for their travel, National Assembly Clerk Michael Sialai said, following a request by the Office of the Deputy President.
“After consultations, necessary approvals were made that we buy them air tickets as per government regulations,” Sialai told the Star on the phone.
Ruto’s office is set to take care of members’ subsistence allowances for the trip, activities which Parliament said it is not privy to.
The Deputy President and his entourage left the country on Sunday morning.
In an earlier statement, Ababu Namwamba, the head of International Relations at the WSR Presidential Secretariat, said the Ruto is “honouring invites by senior government officials and top policy institutes in Washington DC and London.”
“He will share his thoughts on foreign policy, democracy and governance and expound his economic vision for Kenya and Africa,” the former Foreign Affairs Chief Administrative Secretary said.
DP’s scheduled tour of the West and Middle East has drawn mixed reactions from the political quarters amid criticism from anti-Hustler side of the divide.
But Parliament said the facilitation of MPs accompanying members of the executive is the norm.
“This is common practice in government. We receive requests from the respective offices – The President’s and Deputy President,and even Cabinet and Principal Secretaries. They ask us for facilitation for say committee members who accompany them,” Sialai said.
He said that so long as the concerned state agencies are able to make requests, “Parliament will facilitate as per government regulations and we have done it many times.”
“When the MPs come back, they have to file claims for imprest,” Sialai said.
“The said MPs have notified the Speaker of their travel as per the standing orders and therefore have met all requirements to travel of the country.”
Ruto’s office in a February 24 letter by Abdul Mwasera – Principal Administrative Secretary at Harambee Annex requested Parliament to facilitate the six MPs.
“The Members of Parliament listed here will accompany the Deputy President during his visit to USA, UK and Qatar…The purpose of this letter is to request for facilitation of the MPs accordingly,” the letter said.
In Washington DC, Ruto is scheduled to meet officials of the Pentagon as well as the US National Security Council Advisory.
“He will also speak at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the Centre for Strategic and International Studies and also at the University of Arizon’s Washington Entrepreneurship Hub,” Namwamba said.
“The USA leg of the trip will conclude with a meeting of the Kenyan diaspora,” the ex-CAS said, with Parliament’s approval pointing to subsequent clearance by the state for the DP to travel.
Government functionaries in August last year stopped Ruto from leaving the country for a function in Uganda
In London, Ruto is set to meet senior government officials, visit the National Counter Terrorism Centre and speak at the Commonwealth Secretariat and Royal Institute of International Affairs – popularly known as Chatham House.
“He will also engage the Kenyan diaspora in the UK and pay a courtesy call on the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby,” Namwamba said in the February 24 statement.
DP’s scheduled tour is coming hot in the heels of a scaled up political onslaught by his ally-turned-archrival President Uhuru Kenyatta.
The latter now backs ODM leader Raila Odinga who was his competitor in the 2013 and 2017 presidential election – all that the opposition disputed.
President Kenyatta has declared support for Raila, and has on two successive occasions, at Sagana III and at Jubilee Party National Delegates Conference, where he made it clear Ruto is unfit to lead the country.
(edited by Amol Awuor)