City lawyer and Safina Deputy Party Leader Willis Otieno has expressed concern about leaders suggesting the exclusion of any community from government, with attempts to rewrite history.

Taking to his official X account on Sunday, June 7, 2026, Otieno argued that the Kenyan state belongs equally to all citizens, cautioning against attempts to frame governance through ethnic lenses.

He went on to describe that such narratives are both inaccurate and harmful to national cohesion.

“The Kenyan state belongs to all citizens equally. Attempts to rewrite history or suggest exclusion of any community from government are both inaccurate and unhelpful to national cohesion,” Otieno explained.

According to the lawyer, the key measure of leadership should not be which community holds power, but the effectiveness of policies implemented by those in office.

“What matters is not which community has or has not been in power, but whether the policies implemented have improved the lives of Kenyans across the board. Today, many citizens across regions including Nandi, Nyanza, Central Kenya and beyond are feeling the pressure of rising living costs, unemployment, and strained public services,” Otieno stated.

At the same time, Otieno has called on Kenyans to judge leaders based on tangible outcomes such as cost of living, job creation, access to healthcare, quality education, and overall economic dignity for citizens.

“This is a policy question, not an ethnic one. Leadership must be judged on outcomes: cost of living, jobs, healthcare, education, and economic dignity for all Kenyans,” he added.

His remarks come amid ongoing national conversations on governance, equity, and political representation, with a recent apology by President William Ruto to Northern Kenyans sparking debate.

Ruto’s apology to North Eastern

President Ruto issued a formal apology to Northern Kenyans for what he termed decades of historical marginalisation and economic neglect.

Speaking during the Madaraka Day celebration at the Wajir Stadium in Wajir County on Monday, June 1, 2026, President Ruto said that the people of northern Kenya have long been subjected to decades of historical marginalisation and economic neglect, committing to them that this is going to be a thing of the past.

“Decades after independence, this region was left behind. Fellow citizens, I want to tell you that on behalf of the people of Kenya today, as I stand HERE as president and leader of our great nation, to the people of Kenya in northern Kenya for this marginalisation, I want to apologise on behalf of the nation of Kenya,” Ruto said.

Reflecting on the historical trajectory of the nation, President Ruto emphasised that the celebration was far more than an exercise in public relations.

Instead, he framed the occasion as a structural turning point for how the Kenyan state interacts with its northern frontier.

“It is not a mere ceremonial gesture; it is a national declaration, it is a moment of affirmation that Madaraka, our freedom, our dignity, and our self-determination were never meant for some Kenyans, never meant for some region and withheld for others,” Ruto added.