President William Ruto on Thursday, July 11 dismissed all his Cabinet Secretaries (CSs) and Attorney General with immediate effect.
In an address to the nation from State House, Nairobi, President Ruto spared only his deputy Rigathi Gachagua and Prime CS Musalia Mudavadi.
“I have today in line with the powers given to me decided to dismiss with immediate effect all the CSs and AG except the Prime CS and CS for Foreign Affairs and the office of the Deputy President is not affected in any way,” said President Ruto.
The Head of State said that he will be engaging in extensive consultations across different sectors and political formations, as well as Kenyans (both in public and private) to form an ideal government that will help him achieve the Bottom-Up Economic Agenda.
He emphasised that he intends set up a “broad-based gov’t that will assist me in accelerating and expediting the necessary urgent and irreversible implementation of programmes.”
Kenyans’ reactions
Communication Strategist Mark Bichache says that President Ruto has surprised Kenyans by taking a bold move to dismiss both friends and foes in his Cabinet.
“This move can only be compared to Kibaki’s move after he lost the 2005 referendum where he dissolved his Cabinet. This move is unprecedented under the new Constitution,” Bichachi says. “It is something that Uhuru Kenyatta never did even when his Cabinet was full of wrangles.”
Bichachi adds: “Gen Zs have managed to do something that was the role of Parliament. I want to remind Parliamentarians that when they were vetting this Cabinet, they called them ‘skunks’ and gave the President his ‘skunks’. We must thank Gen Z for reviving the conscious of this country, reviving the conscious of the church, and giving this country an opportunity to start afresh.”
Njeri Kahiga, PNU’s National Youth Leader, is impressed by President Ruto for listening to Gen Zs.
“I am happy that the President listened to Gen Z. That Cabinet failed him and made us doubt the legitimacy of his regime. Seeing them mock Kenyans with newly amassed opulence at a time when the taxpayers can’t afford basics raised a lot of concern… Now we request him to make sure that anyone who stole public money is investigated and prosecuted,” Njeri says.
On his part, Arnold Maliba, the Strategic Communication Advisor, UDA, says; “For those who still doubted that June 25th 2024 was a turning point for this country, President Ruto’s decision to fire all Cabinet Secretaries should be your answer.”
