Lawyer Willis Otieno has criticised  Kenya’s long-serving politicians, accusing them of clinging to power for decades without delivering meaningful change to the lives of ordinary citizens.

In a statement on Monday, October 13, 2025, Otieno questioned the credibility of veteran leaders who continue to seek public office despite, in his view, having failed to address the nation’s most pressing challenges during their lengthy tenures.

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“If these so-called legacy politicians were genuinely interested in serving the people, we wouldn’t need their promises; their record would speak for itself. Between them, cumulatively, they have held power for over 200 years,  ministerial seats, parliamentary terms, governorships, Cabinet positions, and senior public offices. Two centuries of opportunity. Two centuries of speeches. Two centuries of failure,” Otieno stated.

He criticized the political class for presiding over what he described as “two hundred years of opportunity wasted,” pointing to the country’s struggling health and education systems as evidence of leadership failure.

“In those 200 years, what do Kenyans have to show for their leadership? A healthcare system that is on its deathbed, where patients are turned away because hospitals have no medicine, no equipment, and no staff. An education system that has collapsed under the weight of poor planning and chronic underfunding, producing graduates the economy cannot absorb,” he added.

Otieno further lamented the high cost of living, which he said has left many Kenyans struggling to survive while those in leadership live in luxury, shielded from the consequences of their governance.

“Two hundred years in power and they couldn’t fix hospitals, schools, or the economy, yet they want five more years to ‘transform Kenya’? Transform what exactly , your suffering into permanent bondage?” he posed.

Further, he accused Kenya’s political elite of deliberate neglect, state capture, and moral decay, saying they have perfected the art of thriving on public misery.

“They don’t lack time. They’ve had time. They lack will. They lack conscience. They lack shame,” Otieno remarked.

He challenged voters to question the experience that veteran politicians boast about during campaigns, arguing that it is experience in plundering rather than progress.

“So the next time they stand before you, chest-thumping about their ‘experience,’ remember: experience in what? Governing or plundering? Leading or looting? Building or bleeding the country dry?” Otieno said.