Omanga exposes rift with Ruto days after decamping to DCP
By Mustafa Juma, March 28, 2026Former nominated senator Millicent Omanga has launched a scathing attack on President William Ruto, accusing him of betraying key promises made to women, just days after she defected from the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) to the Democracy for Citizens Party (DCP) associated with Rigathi Gachagua.
Speaking during an interview with a local TV station on Saturday, March 28, 2026, Omanga claimed that commitments made under a women’s charter ahead of the 2022 General Election were never honoured, describing them as political pledges designed purely to win votes.
50-50 gender representation in government
Omanga revealed that the charter, signed in the presence of the media, allegedly guaranteed a 50-50 gender representation in government, a commitment she says has not been fulfilled.
“We had a women’s charter which was signed, and the media was there. During the women’s charter, because I was on the forefront, the president signed and agreed that it will be 50/50 sharing in his government in terms of gender. Not even two-thirds; it was 50/50 for him,” Omanga said.
Unfulfilled promises
She further alleged that the head of state had pledged free sanitary towels for girls in public schools and additional maternal support programmes, which she claims have since been abandoned.
The outspoken politician-cum-businesswoman also criticised the scrapping of key social programmes, including the Linda Mama initiative introduced during former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s administration.
According to Omanga, the removal of such programs has negatively affected women, particularly those relying on public healthcare services.
She also pointed to unfulfilled pledges such as the provision of free diapers for new mothers, arguing that the gap between promises and delivery has fuelled public frustration.
“He signed again that every girl in public schools would get free sanitary towels, something which we are not seeing now. Another thing was that women delivering in public hospitals would get free diapers for six months. Instead, he went ahead to remove Linda Mama, and during Uhuru’s time we had the Linda Mama scheme where our women would go to hospitals and give birth for free because it is a natural process,” she said.
“All those things were removed, and we came to realise that whatever we signed was just for election purposes.”
Omanga’s remarks come days after her high-profile exit from UDA, where she had been a loyal supporter of President Ruto, to join former deputy president Rigathi Gachagua’s DCP.
She now intends to use DCP to seek the Nairobi Woman Representative seat in the upcoming 2027 general elections.