Former Interior PS Kibicho says Ruto security breach would never have happened under his watch
By Martin Oduor, May 27, 2026Former Interior Principal Secretary Karanja Kibicho has sharply criticised the handling of President William Ruto’s security following a breach that saw a man break through the presidential protection detail during a public event in Bamba, Kilifi county, on Sunday, May 24, 2026.
Speaking during a TV interview Wednesday night May 27, 2026, Kibicho described the incident as “unprecedented” and questioned how security officers allowed repeated exposure of the head of state in crowded public settings.
“I worked in the security sector for seven years. What we are seeing is unprecedented; there is no possible explanation one can give because when one is the president, that is a symbol of national unity,” Kibicho said.
He added that the incident would not have occurred under his tenure at the Interior Ministry.
“That would never have happened under my watch,” he said.
“The people who take care of VVIP security are highly trained; they are trained in Israel.”
The remarks come days after a security scare at a thanksgiving event attended by President Ruto on Sunday, where a man bypassed layers of security and reached close to the president as he addressed supporters.
The man successfully bypassed multiple protective layers, rushed onto the stage, and physically grabbed Ruto by the shoulder while he was delivering a speech in Bamba, Kilifi County.
The incident occurred during a thanksgiving service for Youth Affairs Principal Secretary Fikirini Jacobs. It immediately triggered an uncompromised national security inquiry and a sweeping overhaul of the elite Presidential Escort Unit (PEU).
Former Cabinet minister Mukhisa Kituyi, speaking at the same interview as Kibicho, also weighed in on the controversy, arguing that President Ruto’s frequent roadside stops and rooftop addresses have made security operations increasingly difficult.
“You know you have a situation where the president is permanent on a rooftop of a car stopping in every other place. However brut you are, you cannot rule out snipers,” Kituyi said during the same interview.
Kituyi suggested that the president’s public engagement style, which often involves spontaneous addresses from the roof of a vehicle, increases vulnerability and places additional pressure on security personnel.
“The president is in permanent campaign mode on top of a vehicle – a very old-fashioned style of leadership. I think he doesn’t help much even his security detail when he is so fond of being very monotonous landcruiser stops addresses to people. We have never had a president who was so obsessed with rooftop stops,” he said.
The presidential security detail is considered one of the country’s most elite units, with officers undergoing advanced tactical and intelligence training to manage threats against the head of state.
The breach has since sparked debate over the balance between political accessibility and presidential safety, particularly as Ruto continues to maintain an aggressive public outreach strategy across the country.