Kenyans living in the United States were treated to a humorous moment on Monday May 20, 2024 during President William Ruto’s state visit when he cut short a woman’s question and asked her to speak Swahili instead.
The incident occurred as Ruto was meeting with Kenyans at the Cobb Galleria Centre in Atlanta.
The Kenyan woman, who was directing a question to the President, spoke in English at a fast pace, prompting the president to interject.
“Excuse me madam, Your English is a bit (laughs)…Can you try Swahili, maybe?” he asked.
“Ama kidogo upunguze the tweng, imenipita kidogo” –or you can reduce the tweng maybe (referring to her strong American accent).
The woman then spoke slowly, at one point asking, “Is that slow enough?” amidst laughter from the audience.
When she finished her question on electricity connection in the rural areas, President Ruto had to ask for clarification.
“I had to get translation, I now know what you want,” he said
In his response, Ruto discussed Kenya’s electricity and last-mile connectivity program, which has been in progress for the past 10 years.
He stated that as of 2024, there are 10 million households connected to electricity in the country and that Sh12 billion has been set aside in this year’s budget for the last-mile connectivity program.
Ruto later apologized for not understanding the woman’s English initially.
“Forgive me, if I didn’t understand you. Your English confused me a bit but it’s okay.”
The lighthearted exchange highlighted the cultural and linguistic diversity of Kenyans in diaspora and the importance of accommodating different languages in official settings
