Wiper Party leader Kalonzo Musyoka has called for stronger accountability and integrity in public leadership, saying Kenya needs leaders whose actions match their words.

Speaking during a Sunday service at Deliverance Church in Ruai on May 17, 2026, he told worshippers he felt privileged to join them, describing the church as one of the few places where truth is still spoken freely despite what he called “turbulent, uncertain, and morally fraught times”.

He anchored his message on a sermon focused on accountability.

“Accountability is a word our generation has cheapened, but a principle God has never once negotiated,” he said.

Kalonzo then pointed to scripture, quoting Proverbs 19:1: “Better the poor whose walk is blameless than the fool whose lips are perverse.”

He said the verse places responsibility on leaders to live with integrity rather than rely on status or influence. “King Solomon did not say it is better to be powerful. He did not say ‘better the popular’. He did not say ‘better the wealthy’. He said, ‘Better the blameless’,” he said.

Leadership without integrity

Kalonzo said leadership should not be measured by visibility, power, or position, but by conduct and honesty in service.

“Outside this sanctuary, in the arena of public life where I have served this nation for decades, that verse is not merely scripture — it is a verdict,” he said. “A mirror held up to every leader, every officeholder, every soul entrusted with the weight of public responsibility.”

He added that authority without integrity leads to failure in leadership. “You can command armies, control budgets, and dominate headlines, but if your walk is not blameless, you are, in God’s own reckoning, a fool,” he said.

Kalonzo said Kenya’s challenge is not a shortage of leaders but a shortage of ethical conduct in leadership.

“Kenya does not suffer from a shortage of eloquent lips. We suffer from a shortage of blameless walks,” he said.

He thanked church leaders for what he called firm and honest preaching, saying religious spaces must remain independent and free from political pressure.

The Wiper leader said the message of accountability should extend beyond church walls and into public service, where leaders make decisions affecting citizens daily.

He urged consistency between faith and conduct, saying leadership must reflect honesty, humility, and responsibility in action, not just in speech.

“May the Lord be glorified. And may He be worshipped, not merely in song within these walls, but in the quiet, daily integrity of how we live when we step beyond these doors,” he said.

“God bless you. God bless Kenya.”

Fuel prices and political tensions

After the church service, Kalonzo also addressed journalists outside Deliverance Church, where he criticised President William Ruto over rising fuel prices and what he called growing political intolerance.

He said Kenyans were still struggling with high fuel costs despite government interventions in the oil importation system.

“They are stealing from us because even with G2G fuel importation, fuel is still retailing at Ksh240,” he said.

Kalonzo also accused the president of focusing on political insults instead of addressing economic challenges.

“Every time he wakes up, all he sees is Kalonzo… instead of addressing the rising fuel prices, his job is to insult Kalonzo,” he said.

Former Public Service Cabinet Secretary Justin Muturi, who accompanied Kalonzo, also criticised the government’s handling of the cost of living and accused it of disrespecting both critics and religious leaders.

Muturi said the opposition would unite ahead of the 2027 general election.

“We, as the opposition, will unite and field only one candidate to send the government home,” he said.

He also raised concerns about electoral preparations and warned against interference in the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), saying transparency was essential ahead of the next polls.