President William Ruto with Nyanza leaders during a tour of Migori on September 16, 2026.President William Ruto has asked Nyanza voters to judge his administration on its development record in next year’s general election.
Ruto used his tour of Migori County yesterday to promise residents that his government will continue investing in the region and all other parts of the country regardless of their political affiliations.
The head of state, who got a rousing welcome in the stops at Uriri and Awendo constituencies, cast the next election as a choice between development and the politics of exclusion.
He said his administration had demonstrated its commitment to Nyanza through roads, housing, electricity, markets, education, healthcare and agriculture projects.
The President said Migori alone had been allocated Sh28 billion for various projects, including 8,000 affordable housing units, 19 markets and hostels for students in universities, TVET institutions and other colleges.
He also launched construction of the Sh2.2 billion Kanyawanga-Kwoyo-Madiaba road in Awendo as he continued his push to showcase the government’s development record in the region.
“The people of Kenya will judge us by what we have done,” Ruto said in his message to residents, urging them to consider development when making their political choices in 2027.
The President throughout the tour framed the next election around his administration’s record, arguing that voters should focus on what his government has delivered rather than calls for his removal.
He attacked opposition politicians, accusing them of mobilising residents against government programmes without offering alternative policies.
“They have been hired by a sponsor,” Ruto said, pointing fingers at unnamed politicians opposing projects such as affordable housing, roads and healthcare.
The President said his opponents had resorted to slogans such as “one-term” and “must go” instead of presenting their own development plans.
“Policies? They have none. Plans? They have none. Agenda? They have none. Vision? They have none,” he said as the crowd responded in cheers.
His remarks came a day after he directly attacked former President Uhuru Kenyatta in Siaya, accusing him of sponsoring opposition politicians against his administration.
In recent days, Ruto has stepped up his criticism of Uhuru and other leaders opposed to the broad-based government, a message he took in his battle for Nyanza.
But beyond the political attacks, the President used the Migori leg of the tour to make a detailed case for his administration’s investment in the region.
He said the county’s road budget had increased from less than Sh2 billion in 2022 to Sh19 billion this year, with the government targeting a 320-kilometre tarmac network.
He said 82,000 homes had been connected to electricity over the past three years, with another Sh2.3 billion set aside to connect 21,000 more homes in the next financial year.
The President also sought to reassure sugarcane farmers, promising to return to Migori next month to oversee payment of a bonus.
“I will come back here next month to pay sugar farmers to also get a bonus in the county,” he said in Awendo, before later assuring that he’d deliver the Migori Stadium as well.
The promise comes against the backdrop of years of complaints by farmers over delayed payments and outstanding dues at South Nyanza Sugar Company.
Ruto also defended how his team has handled the challenges at Sony Sugar, promising that its nuclear estate would not be sold while he is President.
The President said workers at the mill were now receiving their salaries regularly and pledged continued government support for the revival of the sugar industry.
Thegovernment has put the value of projects being implemented or planned in Nyanza counties of Kisumu, Siaya, Homa Bay and Migori at more than Sh220 billion.
The projects range from roads, affordable housing, markets, healthcare, water, education and the blue economy.
Ruto’s tour which concludes in Homa Bay today comes as his administration seeks to deepen its political foothold in Nyanza, traditionally an ODM stronghold.
The President is working with ODM leaders to strengthen his presence in the region, even as opposition politicians have stepped up efforts to challenge the plan.
Siaya Governor James Orengo, Embakasi East MP Babu Owino and other opposition figures have been seeking to rally Nyanza residents against the broad-based government.
President Ruto, however, has argued that the arrangement he entered into with Raila Odinga in 2024 is designed to bring communities together and ensure development is spread across the country.
“We, as the broad-based team, are the ones with the ability to unite the whole of Kenya,” Ruto said.
Leaders accompanying Ruto during the tour urged residents to support the Kenya Kwanza administration and embrace development cooperation across political lines.
Homa Bay GovernorGladys Wanga said the government's plans to waive debts owed by Sony Sugar Company, clear arrears for farmers and staff, and build critical infrastructure will change the region for the better.
Migori Governor Ochilo Ayacko, his Kisii counterpart Simba Arati, Migori Senator Eddy Oketch, Migori Woman Representative Fatuma Mohammed, and a host of MPs and government officials, among other leaders, were also present.
INSTANT ANALYSIS
The renewed push for cooperation in western Kenya comes against the backdrop of President William Ruto’s promises to revive Sony Sugar, settle farmers’ and workers’ arrears and expand infrastructure. The latest show of political unity could give the administration fresh momentum in the region, while placing greater pressure on the government to translate its pledges into tangible results.
