Opposition MPs warn Ruto against delegating critical issues to political surrogates
By Mabonga Makhanu, June 3, 2026Members of Parliament allied to the United Opposition and the Linda Mwananchi movement have warned President William Ruto against delegating critical national issues to what they termed as political surrogates.
In a joint statement issued on Wednesday, June 3, 2026, and signed and read by 50 MPs allied to the opposition, the lawmakers expressed concern over what they described as the administration’s growing tendency to delegate matters of national importance to junior political officials and party functionaries.
“Mr President, another troubling feature of this administration has been the growing tendency to delegate serious matters of national importance to junior political officials and party functionaries,” the MPs stated.
The MPs argued that issues concerning the economy, public debt, healthcare, constitutional freedoms, national cohesion, and the future of the Republic deserved answers from the highest office in the land rather than political surrogates. They maintained that leadership requires ownership and that accountability cannot be outsourced.
According to the legislators, Kenyans elected a president and not a chain of spokespersons. They further stated that the more critical an issue is, the greater the obligation for direct presidential accountability.
CSs accused of campaigning
The opposition lawmakers also took issue with what they described as the increasing participation of cabinet secretaries in covert partisan political activities.
They noted that cabinet secretaries are state officers entrusted with the administration of government ministries on behalf of the people of Kenya and that their constitutional duty is to implement public policy professionally, impartially, and in accordance with the law.
The MPs argued that the growing trend of cabinet secretaries acting as political campaigners risks blurring the distinction between the State and the ruling party. They maintained that public office should never be converted into an instrument of partisan political mobilisation.
They further stated that constitutional governance requires state officers to serve the Republic rather than political parties and cautioned against actions that could undermine the principle of neutrality in public service.
Itumbi chairs key meeting
This comes days after Dennis Itumbi was spotted chairing a recent meeting between stakeholders in the matatu sector and government officials, including cabinet secretaries, over the recent fuel hike protests involving the public transport sector.
The development attracted criticism towards President William Ruto, with critics questioning why such a critical matter had been delegated to Itumbi rather than being handled directly by senior government officials.
Gachagua faults Itumbi meeting
Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua also took issue with the move, questioning how the president could entrust such an important national issue to what he referred to as a blogger. Gachagua argued that matters of such magnitude should be handled by the relevant government institutions and senior state officials.