Kenya's Deputy President tells off President over impeachment claim

MOMBASA, Kenya

Kenya’s Deputy President, William Ruto has told off President Uhuru Kenyatta for what he described as the president's use of State House to plant seeds of discord and division among Kenyans.

Stung by the president's allegations of plotting to topple him, DP Ruto directly addressed President Kenyatta asking the president to be the unifying factor instead of engaging in propaganda. 

The DP was speaking on his third day of the Coastal region campaigns where he led his Kenya Kwanza allies to Msambweni, Kwale.

“Please Mr. President, you are the leader of all Kenyans, don’t allow State House to be used as the theatre of planting of seeds of division of the Kenyans,” said Ruto as he termed the allegations as baseless.

“Mr President you know it is not true it is false and I want to ask you out of humility to protect the office of the president,” he said.

Ruto is locked in a fierce presidential contest with ODM leader Raila Odinga who has the backing of President Kenyatta.

"Even though you do not want to support me... it is fine. I supported you unconditionally. My friend Mr President. please do not allow State House to be the arena where falsehoods, propaganda, and negative ethnicity are being propagated against me as your deputy. My friend I stood by you when no other person was ready to stand by you...," said Ruto.

On Satursday, President Uhuru Kenyatta spoke for the first time of an alleged plan by his deputy, William Ruto, to engineer his ouster through impeachment and sabotage. 

Kenyatta, who was addressing Gìkùyù elders who visited him at State House, Nairobi said Ruto had an insatiable appetite for power and was keen on fomenting dissent from within the Jubilee party, to elbow his boss.

The President also took time to explain to the elders why he reached out to ODM Leader Raila Odinga and shook hands in March 2018. 

Explaining the Handshake, Kenyatta told the elders that he reached out to his arch-rival turned ally, to steady the government, and slow puncture what he termed Ruto's grand plan to sabotage his administration and ascend to power through the backdoor.