Spare us your intellectual deceit, Ruto fires at privatisation critics

Deputy President Kithure Kindiki, President William Ruto and Lands CS Alice Wahome during an engagement forum with graduate interns under the affordable housing programme at State House, Nairobi on January 23 /PCS

President William Ruto has hit back at critics of the Kenya Pipeline and Safaricom privatisation initiatives.

Ruto defended the government’s strategy of listing public corporations on the capital markets, saying transparent valuation should leave no cause for alarm.

He spoke during an engagement forum with graduate interns onboarded under the Affordable Housing Programme at State House on Friday.

 “Any public listed company, the tested, proven, transparent valuation is done by the capital market, at the exchange. It’s not done in boardrooms,” Ruto said.

“Those people giving us lectures about what we’re doing with the Kenya Pipeline IPO and Safaricom should spare us their political conmanship and intellectual deceit.”

The President said privatisation and divestment are prudent strategies for raising resources, strengthening corporate governance and democratising ownership of public assets.

Highlighting the ongoing Kenya Pipeline IPO, he said the initiative would allow ordinary Kenyans to own a stake in the critical national asset.

“We all agreed that divesting and privatisation is a prudent way of raising resources. Today, we are in the market in the Kenya Pipeline IPO; it’s going to democratise the ownership of a public asset like Kenya Pipeline,” he said.

Ruto encouraged citizens to participate in the IPO regardless of their financial capacity, saying even modest contributions would allow them to hold shares in the company.

“I want to ask every Kenyan, with only Sh900, you can buy 100 shares of Kenya Pipeline and you can continue to buy more. Let us all own a piece of the good we have built together,” he said.

The President’s remarks come amid rising criticism from opponents who have questioned the government’s approach to privatising key state assets.

Ruto, however, insisted that the process is transparent and guided by market principles, and warned that politically motivated critiques should not cloud public understanding.

He said listing public corporations on the capital markets provides an opportunity for ordinary citizens to benefit from national wealth, promoting inclusion and collective participation in Kenya’s economic growth.

During the engagement, Ruto praised the role of young professionals in the Affordable Housing Programme, saying strong human capital is essential for implementing large-scale national projects.

He urged the interns to take advantage of learning opportunities and to contribute innovatively to nation-building efforts.

Ruto also expressed pride in the growing participation of skilled professionals across sectors, among them construction, planning, surveying, engineering and information and communications technology (ICT).

He said their involvement is vital for the success of the housing programme.

“I am happy when I see the men and women, professionals from the construction industry who are planners, surveyors, engineers, people who work in the ICT space. I am proud the housing programme is maturing and we have professionals, workers and consulting firms in the equation,”he said.