Ruto's big dilemma: Window closing for first 100 days poll pledges

With barely 40 days to go, economic experts and political pundits have said that the new administration must be in a race against time to meet the pledges.

There is growing doubt the new administration may meet the pledges to the satisfaction of the populace.

Ahead of the swearing-in, the Kenya Kwanza brigade promised to reduce the cost of unga, fuel and other household commodities immediately after taking oath.

They said unga would be Sh70 and that fuel would be sold at Sh100. This is yet to happen, with fuel prices left to market forces after the new team ended the subsidy.

The high cost of living is coupled with high prices of crucial utilities, including water and electricity.

Prof Gitile Naituli, a lecturer at Multimedia University, said that the promises on unga and fuel price reliefs cannot be achieved in 100 days.

He said reliefs would only come to Kenyans in the long-term “if the government plans carefully, without selfishness.”

“Unless they start organising their thoughts properly, they actually may not fix this economy. You need to look clever. Work with tested theories,” the don said.

In assessing Ruto’s pledges, members of the Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Coalition Party hold that Kenyans should “lower their expectations.”

“We wish to alert Kenyans early enough to significantly lower their expectations. We are on our own if these developments are anything to go by,” Azimio MPs said.

In a hard hitting statement in Parliament on Tuesday, the group led by Opiyo Wandayi (Ugunja MP and minority leader) cited what they termed as "lack of leadership".

In the hard-hitting statement, the opposition leaders said, “The country is crying for leaders that will bring it together and also make the decisions needed to tackle the monumental challenges our people are going through.”

Prodded further, Wandayi on Wednesday said the opposition wished to give Ruto and his administration the benefit of doubt and allow ample time for the team to settle and deliver the promises.

“We are disappointed at the very beginning of his administration. This is because the signs then were really worrying.  There have been serious contradictions and confusion.”

Azimio leader Raila Odinga, during a recent tour of the Coast region, castigated the new administration for delaying the pledges.

He said that the President and his team were “buying time and whining instead of immediately implementing his promises to Kenyans.”

The sentiments brought to the fore the new political war front pitting the two leaders over campaign promises and Kenya Kwanza policies.

“He (Ruto) said that immediately he would lower the Bible he would reduce the prices of unga. Have the unga prices come down? He is now asking for one year,” the ODM chief said. 

The veteran opposition leader also asked the President to implement an interest-free Hustler Fund.  

“He (Ruto) had said he would ensure that the Hustler Fund is without interest, why the about turn?” Raila said. 

 Apart from the cost of living question, Kenya Kwanza also made a raft of promises to help align the government better, respect the rule of law.

In the campaigns, Ruto pledged to establish a quasi-judicial public inquiry to investigate elements of state capture in the nation.

The team was to investigate cronyism in the government systems and make recommendations on the same.

The Kenya Kwanza team also promised to determine, within 60 days, all judgments and orders against the government to ensure compliance and adherence to the court rulings.

The ruling coalition also promised to commission a review of the terms of service for all officers in the security sector.

The review, as per the Kenya Kwanza manifesto, was to ensure the salaries are commensurate to the cost of living.

The President promised that his administration would take measures to quickly lower the cost of living within 100 days.

He also pledged to work together with health workers and county governments to find a solution to the perennial health workers' strikes.

The conversation was to be held within the first 100 days of the Kenya Kwanza administration.

Dr Charles Nyambuga of Maseno University said the view that a number of the promises – such as lower food and fuel prices – are not going to be attained.

“Already there are attempts to shift goal posts on the Hustler Fund to be launched in December,” he said.

Although not within the three-month window, Kenya Kwanza also committed to developing a turnaround strategy for Kenya Airways within 180 days.

Ruto team further pledged 50 per cent share of Cabinet slots for women, which did not come to fruition with the recent Cabinet slots.

The President, however, handed seven Cabinet slots, the situation obtaining in the nomination of Principal Secretaries where women were allocated 12 slots.

Mwala MP Vincent Musau, a staunch Ruto ally, exuded the confidence that the Kenya Kwanza agenda was on course.

“There are some things that we have put in place. We have no intention of failing to fulfil any of the promises we made to Kenyans,” he told the Star.

He added, “All the promises will be fulfilled, be it the Hustler Fund, the way we do NHIF payments, and the issue of saving culture. Our food security approach is also on course,” Musau said.

He said that some of the interventions like fuel require legislation, adding that the issues have been extensively discussed in the party’s parliamentary group meeting.

“You will also realise it has not been long since he took power and there is a lot happening already,” the lawmaker said.

“He (President Ruto) has tried to persuade us to push on the legislations and ensure they are passed as they are aligned to the manifesto.”

Molo MP Francis Kimani said they were in a race against time to effect the laws that would stage the reliefs, including tax reduction.

A Central Bank of Kenya report showed that more money is currently circulating in the market compared with September.

It showed that cash circulating outside banks increased as well as nearly all categories of deposits.

Experts however hold that some of the policy measures such as taxing the rich more and increasing NHIF contributions could be counterproductive.

“You don’t raise taxes in an economy under recession. When you have such a scenario, you reduce taxes so that wananchi have more disposable income, hence increased spending,” Prof Naituli said.

Ruto team has initiated budget cuts in a concerted effort to slash government spending and free more money to development.

The Parliamentary Budget Office said that the economy faces an uncertain future posed by poor rainfall, a weakening shilling, increased fuel prices, high debt servicing costs and declining levels of income.

The team advises that the government comes up with concrete policies that result in either the expansion of revenue or contraction of recurrent expenditure over the medium term.