President William Ruto at the Second Kenya Urban Forum in Naivasha on June 17, 2025 / PCSPresident William Ruto told off his critics, saying his regime will not be defined by term limits and time.
The President said that his leadership should be determined by the impact and transformation it brings to the residents.
This follows calls by opposition leaders for Ruto to be a one-term President, popularly referred to as ‘Wantam.'
However, the President has come out to defend his tenure, saying he should be judged by the development he has made in the country and not time.
“I will not allow anybody to define me in terms of time, terms, and elections, no. This project is not about how many terms you serve or which elections come this way or that way," Ruto said.
"I want leadership in Kenya to be defined by how much impact we are making and the transformation we are undertaking, and how good a foundation we are laying for generations to come. That is what Kenya should be defined by; that is how leadership should be defined in Kenya."
The President said what he is focusing on delivering to Kenyans, urging all leaders to make long-term decisions for the future.
He regretted that leaders have, for a long time, wasted time and energy on election issues at the expense of decisions and policies aimed at transforming the lives of Kenyans.
He said a leader’s success is not about how long one serves, it is about how much of a difference, impact, and transformation they make and how solid a foundation they are building.
He said these are not for tomorrow, not for the next election, but for the next generation.
“We have wasted a lot of time; we have wasted eternity chasing the next election and the next most popular thing, and in the process, our country has suffered. We are going to change that trajectory by God’s Grace, and this country is going to go places.”
Speaking during the Second Kenya Urban Forum in Naivasha, Nakuru County, on Tuesday, he pledged to continue uplifting the lives of Kenyans, especially those at the bottom of the economic pyramid and in informal settlements.
The President noted that the implementation of the Affordable Housing Programme is enabling many Kenyans, especially those in slums, to own decent homes and live dignified lives like other people. Saying he is a man on a mission to transform the country, Ruto added that no amount of noise by detractors will stop him from implementing his agenda.
"I won't accept being disrupted. I am willing to pay the price by ensuring that we give Kenyans decent homes," he stated.
The President announced that 700,000 housing units are in the pipeline and in different stages of construction and procurement across the country.
He said he was impressed that the housing programme has transformed the lives of Jua Kali artisans, among other small and medium enterprises.
In Soweto, Nairobi, Ruto noted that Jua Kali artisans have a contract up to the tune of Sh720 million.
"Today, Jua Kali people are winning major construction contracts. This is the new Kenya we want for all of us, a reality we envisaged in our manifesto," the President explained.
He explained that affordable housing is a national transformation programme that is leaving no community or region or nobody behind.
At the same time, the President said Kenya is rapidly urbanising at an annual growth rate of 4.3 per cent, pointing out that by 2050, half of the country’s population will be living in towns and cities.
"As a result, we are implementing bold and strategic measures to shape this urban future, ensuring that every Kenyan has access to planned, dignified and decent housing," he said.
