President William Ruto has defended retired President Uhuru Kenyatta against criticism from some Kenya Kwanza allies over the health insurance programme, Linda Mama.
Speaking in Kajiado on Tuesday, Ruto said it laid the foundation for the expanded Linda Jamii programme and the current Universal Health Coverage (UHC) model.
He noted that it would be unfair to dismiss Uhuru’s efforts, adding that the Jubilee-era programme provided valuable lessons that informed the design of its successor.
“Let me defend my former boss, President Uhuru Kenyatta. We should be magnanimous about the time he led our country,” Ruto said.
“The Linda Mama programme was a strong foundation. We developed it under the Jubilee administration, under the leadership of President Uhuru, and we learned a lot from it.”
Ruto explained that Linda Jamii was not introduced to replace Linda Mama out of rejection, but to improve and expand it.
While Linda Mama focused primarily on maternal care, Linda Jamii covers prenatal, delivery, postnatal care, and extends benefits to entire households.
“Linda Mama was good. Linda Jamii is broader. It no longer targets only mothers but also children and households,” he said.
According to Ruto, the benefits under Linda Jamii have been significantly increased.
Whereas Linda Mama offered between Sh2,000 and Sh2,500, the new scheme provides between Sh10,000 and Sh30,000 per enrollee.
The President added that Linda Jamii has since been integrated into the universal health coverage model, now managed under the Social Health Authority (SHA).
He said the number of beneficiaries has grown from seven million under the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) to 26.5 million under SHA.
“We learned lessons from Linda Mama, which is why we designed a better Linda Jamii programme. And we have progressed further into universal health coverage, now reaching the wider Kenyan community. That is why we have expanded from 7 million to 26.5 million beneficiaries,” Ruto said.
Earlier, at the Jubilee NDC gathering on Friday, Uhuru expressed concerns about the current administration, questioning the direction of national leadership and calling for inclusive, vision-driven politics.
He said the Jubilee Party had remained largely silent over the past three years but felt compelled to address what he described as growing issues.
“Even when we were in the presidency, all the work we did was for everyone, and we did not leave any communities out of the developments,” Uhuru said.
“That is how we improve the lives of Kenyans. We need a party that brings everyone together based on a shared vision, rather than dividing along communities.”
Ruto’s remarks follow criticism of Uhuru by some of his close allies.
The United Democratic Alliance (UDA) issued a statement on Saturday through party Secretary General Hassan Omar, noting that Uhuru’s comparison did not fully account for improvements introduced under Ruto’s leadership.
“Linda Jamii is ahead in terms of scope, quality, and inclusivity,” Omar said, highlighting the programme’s expanded benefits.
