Deputy President Kithure Kindiki has defended the Kenya Kwanza administration’s development record as he rallies residents of Mt Kenya behind President William Ruto’s re-election bid.
During his tour of Kiambu county on Wednesday, Kindiki said the government should be judged against the promises it made during the 2022 election campaigns, citing road projects, markets, affordable housing and job creation as evidence of progress.
“This government will be held accountable under the manifesto we campaigned on four years ago,” he said.
The DP at different stops in the county said the ongoing infrastructure projects and interventions in agriculture and education demonstrated the administration’s commitment to its pledges.
He cited the construction of modern markets intended to provide traders, particularly mama mboga, with better working conditions.
“We campaigned on the promise that we would build modern markets to remove mama mboga from mud and dirt to good places. We are on course in building those markets,” Kindiki said.
He also defended the government’s agricultural interventions, including subsidised fertiliser and seeds, saying reducing farm input costs would improve farmers’ earnings.
On education, Kindiki said the administration had employed 100,000 teachers and planned to recruit another 20,000, which he described as the highest number of teachers employed by any government.
“We campaigned on the pledge that we would employ enough teachers so that every schooling child can get an education to change their family and change the nation,” he said.
The Deputy President also cited the installation of milk coolers to reduce post-harvest losses and improve farmers’ incomes, saying the programme was being implemented. Kiambu, he said, had already received 14 coolers.
He maintained that the government’s performance should be assessed through tangible development outcomes rather than political rhetoric.
“That is what will count, not the insults and the noise and bravado,” he said.
Kindiki was returning to the county weeks after his coronation as the Mt Kenya kingpin and spokesperson, with the tour providing an opportunity to reinforce the government’s development message in a region that will be crucial to Ruto’s re-election prospects.
In his appeal for support for the President, Kindiki urged residents to focus on what the administration had delivered rather than political rhetoric.
His efforts are part of the government’s push to win back support in the region amid opposition mobilisation and shifting alliances in Mt Kenya.
In Kiambu, he said 31 markets had been built, alongside investments in student hostels and technical and vocational education institutions.
He announced plans for a 1,740-bed hostel at Kiambu National Polytechnic at a cost of Sh672 million, saying the investment would expand accommodation for students pursuing technical training.
The DP also cited 1,977 affordable housing units in the county, saying the programme would improve living conditions and help address the growth of informal settlements.
Nationally, he said the affordable housing programme had created 1.1 million jobs, presenting it as part of the administration’s efforts to expand employment opportunities.
On infrastructure, Kindiki said the government was implementing a nationwide road construction programme targeting 6,000 kilometres.
He cited the Rironi-Mau Summit highway project and the Muthaiga-Kiambu-Ndumberi road works, saying 1,285 kilometres of roads in Kiambu were planned at a cost of Sh152 billion.
During the tour, he launched tarmacking works on the Karura Ka Nyungu-Muthure Road in Kabete constituency and construction works on the Muthure-Njathaini Road.
The latter forms part of a Sh330 million road network covering several routes in the area, including Kanyariri-Muthure, Ngure ACK-Gitaru-Kanyariri-Ndumbu-ini, Green Belt-Mbari ya Njau, Motego-Gitaru and St Anne Catholic-Kaburini.
Kindiki also inspected construction at Karura Ka Nyungu Technical Training Institute, where Sh30 million had been allocated, with a further Sh40 million expected to be disbursed.
At Kirigiti Primary School, he attended the groundbreaking for new classrooms, an administration block and an ablution block.
He also inspected the ongoing construction of Kangangi Fresh Produce Market in Kiambu town. He said the facility was 30 per cent complete and would cost Sh267 million.
Beyond development, Kindiki issued a warning to traders and cartels involved in the production and sale of illicit alcohol, which has caused deaths and suffering in parts of the county.
He vowed that the government would intensify its crackdown on illicit brews and the ethanol trade, saying those involved would face action.
