Eliud Owalo: What I will do if elected president

Presidential aspirant Eliud Owalo./HANDOUT

Former Deputy Chief of Staff in charge of Delivery and Government Efficiency Eliud Owalo has detailed his vision for the country should he mount a successful presidential bid.

The former ICT Cabinet Secretary anchored his pitch on economic reforms, anti-corruption measures, and a digital jobs revolution.

Owalo said his interest in seeking the presidency has been fueled by consultations with a broad spectrum of national stakeholders, as well as growing public sentiment that Kenya now requires a new brand of leadership.

“My presidential bid ambitions were inspired by the fact that I have held extensive discussions with various stakeholder sectors in the recent past, and a cross-section of Kenyans have urged me on to run for the presidency of Kenya. Kenyans feel like we no longer need legacy politicians at the helm; we need managers, technocrats, and transformational leaders who can manage the resources of the country,” he said during an interview at KBC on Monday.

Owalo argued that corruption remains the single most destructive threat to Kenya’s economic stability, estimating that the government loses at least Sh2 billion daily through graft. If elected, he pledged to enforce a sweeping clean-up anchored on digitalization of revenue systems and historical audits.

“We will deal with corruption by ensuring that we seal all revenue leakages courtesy of digitalization. We need to audit all cases of corruption within the period of the current constitution. If I’m elected president, I will reopen all cases of corruption from 2010 to date. We know who the perpetrators of corruption are so that Kenyans can get closure,” he said.

Citing his tenure as ICT Cabinet Secretary, Owalo claimed a strong anti-corruption track record in both the public and private sectors, which he argued positions him to lead reforms from the front.

Owalo framed his agenda around what he termed Kenya’s third liberation, identifying economic liberation as the next frontier after the struggles for independence and for multiparty democracy.

“I have analyzed our micro-economic environment and I have zeroed in on about nine micro-level parameters and issues that I want to focus on. I want to address taxation, put it in a non-punitive, impartial and all-inclusive regime,” he said.

Youth unemployment, Owalo noted, remains a major national challenge that requires innovation and structural reforms.

He said he would leverage digital industries, sports, and technology to create jobs and stimulate new investment pathways, building on the digital hubs and digital jobs initiatives launched during his time at the ICT Ministry.

Owalo also pledged to overhaul key social sectors including education and health, promising that improved domestic revenue mobilization and reduced leakages would enable the government to offer free primary education, free day secondary education, and free health services in public facilities.

“It used to happen in the 70s and 80s and we should be asking ourselves, we need to look back in retrospect and ask ourselves, where did we go wrong? We used to have free medical care in public institutions.”