Karua calls on Kenyans not to elect leaders who prioritise self-enrichment
By Kenneth Mwenda, April 18, 2026People’s Liberation Party leader Martha Karua has accused Kenyan leaders of wasting public money instead of using it to serve ordinary citizens.
In a post on X on Saturday, April 18, 2026, Karua stated clearly that the country does not suffer from a lack of resources. The real issue, she said, lies with how leaders spend what is available.
“Kenya does not have a resource problem. We have leadership with a spending problem,” Karua wrote.
She continued: “Pesa iko. Lakini imepelekwa mifuko ya wachache, badala ya kuhudumia mwananchi wa kawaida.”
Karua called for a complete change in attitude. She demanded that leadership return to service and stop the pursuit of self-enrichment. Leaders, she added, must stay accountable and treat public funds as something that belongs to the people, not as personal wealth.
“The track record of those we elect matters,” she said. “Your vote determines whether we have self-serving or people-serving leaders. Use it wisely.”
Karua steps up attack on Ruto
This latest statement fits into Karua’s long-running criticism of the current administration. On April 8, 2026, during an interview with K24 TV, she described herself as a “standing president” ready to take over at any opportunity.
She attacked President William Ruto’s style of governance and promised a different approach if elected in 2027.
Karua stressed that her presidency would rest on the rule of law. She said the law must mark the boundary between one person’s rights and another’s. She also drew a firm line between personal money and public resources.
“When we ignore the law, we behave and utilise public resources as our own. I think that is what William Ruto is doing,” she said in the interview.
She pointed to cash handouts at State House events and unplanned promises made during public appearances. Such actions, she argued, show poor fiscal discipline and blur the line between state funds and private use.
“Dishing out money at State House… it cannot be his resources,” Karua said.