President William Ruto has defended his administration’s education reforms and urged Kenyans to reject pessimism, saying the country is on the path to transformation.
Ruto said his government had made major strides in addressing long-standing challenges in the education sector despite criticism from some quarters.
“In our lifetime, we are going to change our country. I have so much belief in it,” Ruto said.
He was speaking on Saturday during the 120th anniversary celebrations of Maseno School in Kisumu County.
“Don’t worry about the naysayers. Don’t worry about the pessimists and the people who see nothing good,” he added.
The President questioned critics who continue to describe the education sector as being in crisis despite the government’s recent investments in teachers and infrastructure.
“Because I sometimes wonder when I see people say how much of a crisis we have in education. There was no crisis when we had a shortage of 100,000 teachers. Now that we have hired 100,000 teachers, there is a crisis,” he said.
“There was no crisis when there was a shortage of classrooms. Now that we have built 23,000 classrooms in three years, all of a sudden, there is a crisis, really?” he posed.
Ruto called for unity, collaboration and faith in the country’s ability to overcome its challenges, saying Kenyans must stop engaging in blame games and instead focus on solutions.
“I don’t know why people always want to see the glass as half empty, not half full. There is always a contribution each and every one of us can make,” he said.
“Finger-pointing, blame games and assigning other people blame will not solve our problems.”
The President further appealed for moral and responsible leadership across all sectors of society.
“We need godly leaders across the board, those of us in politics and those of us in other areas,” he said.
He challenged Kenyans to reflect on their individual contribution towards national development instead of constantly criticising others.
“There are no angels that will come from anywhere. It is us. Before you ask the next person what they have done, please have a meeting with yourself and ask yourself, what have you done before you point fingers at others,” Ruto said.
The Head of State maintained that belief in God, national unity and confidence in Kenya’s potential would be key in taking the country to the next level.
