Speaking during campaigns in the Gikomba area, Ruto, without mentioning names, took a swipe at Uhuru for blaming the Ukraine-Russia war for the high cost of living.
“Ati bei ya unga imeenda juu kwa sababu ya vita kule Ukraine? Si vita inaendelea bado Ukraine? Si leo wamesema watateremsha bei ya unga? Kumaanisha ile walikuwa wanatuambia eti mambo ya Ukraine ilikuwa tu ni kutuhadaa,” he said.
The comments come months after President Uhuru said the high cost of living had been largely contributed by external factors, including the Ukraine-Russia war.
The flour will now retail at Sh100, a drop by Sh130.
Ruto buys jacket for Sh20,000 at Gikomba market
UDA presidential candidate William Ruto on Monday bought a second-hand jacket for Sh20,000 in the Gikomba market.
Ruto was leading campaigns at the expansive market together with his Kenya Kwanza allies when a trader offered him the jacket.
Read: Should Imran Okoth the best MP in the country go up to the big office?
“Wacha sasa tupige bei. Hii ni ngapi,” Ruto asked.
The lady asked for Sh2,000 for the short-sleeved jacket upon which the DP jokingly said it was much.
“Apana elfu mbili ni mingi. Bei ya jioni, huyu mama anataka kuninyoa bila maji, mimi nimechanuka bana usinione hivi,” Ruto said.
The lady trader then told him she would offer him a Sh500 discount and collect Sh1,500 for the clothing.
At this point, the DP reached into his pocket and fished out a bundle of notes saying “haya shika hii elfu ishirini ujipange nayo.”
So this terrible opportunist goes to Gikomba market where he has never gone before for any clothes and he wants to splash his cash. He pays Shs. 20,000 for a jacket to show how generous he is.
We all know that the yellow uniforms and jackets that Ruto and UDA parade in are not bought from Gikomba. Those are clothes specifically tailored for them. Ruto buys the textiles from somewhere out of the country and he has tailors working overtime to fit him with clothes and to clothe the poor chaps and women who have to dance at the rallies in yellow uniforms. My father was a tailor and owned his own shop so I know how good our tailors are. But in this case, as soon as the elections are over, those Ruto uniform tailors are out of work.
The price of Unga is a big issue in Kenya. It is a good thing the government is willing to subsidize maize flour for now. Then after August 9, 2022, Azimio will come up with a long-lasting plan.
Meanwhile, William Ruto can cry all he wants because Kenyans have maize for their food. Ruto can order his lunch directly from Paris and it will come in a private jet. Kenyans do not have that luxury. Let them have their unga.
Adongo Ogony is a Human Rights Activist and a Writer who lives in Toronto, Canada