President William Ruto/HANDOUTPresident William Ruto has challenged opposition leaders seeking to unite against him to present an alternative agenda or risk defeat in the 2027 General Election.
The President said opposition leaders were focused on tribal arithmetic and political alliances against him, but warned that Kenyans would reject such formations at the ballot.
“Unite or not, if you have no agenda, we will beat you very early in the morning,” the President said in Chebara, Elgeyo Marakwet County, on Tuesday.
He accused his political competitors of relying on tribal calculations, insults and hatred instead of presenting concrete proposals to address the country’s challenges.
“Our competitors have no plan for the country. They cannot tell us their agenda. They cannot tell us their vision. All they are telling us is how they are going to unite on tribal arithmetic,” Ruto said.
The President’s remarks come as opposition leaders seek to unite and field a single candidate to challenge his re-election bid.
Ruto urged voters to reject leaders who, he said, wanted to revive divisive politics and instead support candidates with programmes capable of transforming the country.
“I want to urge you, don’t accept those who lack an agenda and want to take us back to the old politics of measuring leadership with tribalism, discrimination and insults,” he said.
“Don’t allow us to be taken back to the old politics by people who don’t have any plan,” he urged residents.
The President defended his administration’s record, saying his victory in 2022 was based on the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda, which he maintained had provided a framework for implementing government commitments.
He said his administration had a clear record against which Kenyans could assess its performance and urged voters to use the same criteria when choosing their leaders in 2027.
“In 2022, the people of Kenya voted for a plan. The people of Kenya voted for a Bottom-Up Transformation Agenda, and that is how we have managed to transform this nation,” Ruto said.
“That is how we have been held to account in every commitment we made. Today, we have a plan and a deliberate track of what we have done.”
“In 2027, I am asking the people of Kenya: let us vote for a plan. Let us vote for an agenda. Let us vote in the right people because that is how we are going to change our country,” he said.
Ruto dismissed calls for opposition unity based on ethnic considerations, describing such politics as outdated and incapable of delivering meaningful change.
“If you want to compete with us, look for a plan, an agenda, work for transformation, and let us meet at the ballot,” he said.
He urged residents to register as voters and obtain identification documents and voter registration cards, emphasising the importance of electoral participation ahead of the next General Election.
“Will you take IDs and voters’ cards?” he asked the crowd.
INSTANT ANALYSIS
Ruto is seeking to frame the 2027 election as a contest between his development agenda and an opposition he portrays as driven by tribal arithmetic. By challenging his rivals to unite, he is attempting to undermine their coalition-building efforts before they gain momentum. His emphasis on the Bottom-Up agenda also signals a strategy to defend his record while shifting scrutiny from public discontent to the opposition’s lack of a clearly defined alternative programme.
