Ruto defends record, blames rising discontent on propaganda

President William Ruto has hit out at his critics over claims that he has failed to deliver on his campaign promises.

The President said critics of the Kenya Kwanza government were spreading fake news and propaganda.

The head of state urged Kenyans to ignore his critics and instead believe in his transformation agenda.

“All of us as people of Kenya, it is time that we believe in this great country that God has given us. It is time that we stopped the negativity, it is time to stop believing in the fake news and propaganda that is hurting our nation,” said Dr Ruto on Monday at the National Youth Service College in Gilgil, Nakuru County, where he presided over the graduation of 574 forest officers.

The president defended his performance in the past two years, which he described as remarkable.

According to him, the KFS, for instance, has undergone tremendous transformation, including an increase in the number of recruits and the recruitment of senior officers such as cadets.

“What has been achieved in the last two years, such as reducing criminal activities by 90 percent, is something we should be proud of. The fact that KFS can now raise its resources because of the transformation and reforms undertaken by the government is something that we should celebrate,” said President Ruto.

He said the reforms have also been carried out at the Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS), the National Youth Service (NYS) and many other institutions.

The president's remarks come in the wake of mounting criticism of his administration from civil society groups as well as individual Kenyans who have taken it upon themselves to highlight some of the projects where they say public funds have been misappropriated.

Among the fierce critics is lawyer-turned-activist David Morara Kebaso, who has been crisscrossing the country highlighting some of the white elephant projects that have siphoned off millions of taxpayers' money.

Others include photojournalist and rights activist Boniface Mwangi, a vocal critic of the Kenya Kwanza regime, who has been arrested countless times for his activities.

In his defence, however, President Ruto said he has managed to put the country on the global map and in a position of high esteem because of his track record.

He pointed out that KFS has been able to generate its revenue to run its affairs because of his reforms in the sector.

“This year we supported KFS by Sh280 million only as the rest of the Sh4.7 billion budget was raised by the KFS itself. I also have the undertaking from the CS and KFS that from next year KFS will exit from requiring resources from exchequer and will run their own affairs using their own internally generated resources,” said Ruto.

The president commended the graduates for their successful training and urged them to believe in themselves, their work and their country.

He cautioned them not to tarnish their careers with integrity issues, laxity and incompetence, a challenge faced by many in the civil service, but rather to embrace dedication and innovation in finding solutions for the sustainable management and conservation of forest resources.

Dr Ruto pledged to ensure that the government provides an enabling environment to facilitate the effective management and conservation of forests, not limited to the amendment of the Forest Management and Conservation Act 2016.

“On our part, we shall continue to develop and refine institutional frameworks beginning by amending the Forest Conservation and Management Act 2016 to make sure all stakeholders have a robust support to pursue innovation, collaboration and ambitious action to turn forests into vehicles of sustainable transformation,” said Ruto.

Some 105 Kenya Forest Service inspector cadets and 465 forestry trainees graduated at the colourful ceremony after completing six months of rigorous forest law enforcement training and one month of tactical training in a harsh forest environment.

In his message, the Chief Conservator of Forests, Alex Lemarkoko, said the officers would play a major role in achieving the Kenya Kwanza government's plan to plant at least 15 billion trees in 10 years.

"The 574 officers greatly support the national landscape restoration strategy for increasing national tree cover by growing 15 billion trees by 2032 and further enhance support in securing our forest resources across the country," he said.

Environment and Natural Resources Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale and Nakuru Governor Susan Kihika were among the dignitaries present at the graduation. 

This story originally appeared in Nation.