Sports Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen has criticized the nationwide backlash targeting President William Ruto, claiming it stems from tribal bias.
At Kericho County Vocational Training Centres' first joint graduation ceremony, Murkomen accused the church, media, and government critics of unfairly evaluating Ruto's performance based on his ethnicity rather than substantive issues.
The CS expressed concern over the tendency to compare Ruto solely with Kenya's second president, Daniel arap Moi, who, like Ruto, hails from the Kalenjin community.
He argued that past presidents like Jomo Kenyatta, Mwai Kibaki, and Uhuru Kenyatta—who were Kikuyus—are rarely used as benchmarks.
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“It is unjust that many critics, including the church and media, focus on tribal biases rather than factual performance metrics,” Murkomen stated. “Why not compare Ruto’s first two years to Kibaki’s or Kenyatta’s, rather than exclusively to Moi’s era?”
Murkomen noted that Ruto, in his two years as president, has faced similar economic challenges as Kibaki did during his initial years in office. Despite early criticism, Kibaki eventually earned recognition for significant economic progress by the end of his term.
The former Elgeyo Marakwet senator expressed optimism that Ruto would also silence critics by delivering economic transformation over time.
“Criticism should focus on facts and fair comparisons, not tribal affiliations,” he urged. “Just as Kibaki turned the economy around, Ruto, with adequate support, will deliver positive results for Kenya.”
