Githunguri Member of Parliament Gathoni Wamuchomba has issued a fresh and direct challenge to President William Ruto, accusing his administration of failing to deliver on key agriculture promises made to farmers during the 2022 campaigns.

In a detailed post on Monday, November 24, 2025, the MP reminded the president that he once served as Minister for Agriculture and built a reputation for strong performance. She said this record convinced her and other leaders to campaign for him, believing he would revive key cash crops such as miraa, macadamia, pyrethrum, cashew nuts, coffee, tea and sugarcane.

Wamuchomba said farmers had expected major reforms, but three years later, many still feel abandoned. She claimed that the formal letters she sent to the president’s office went unanswered, pushing her to raise the matter publicly.

She listed several questions for the president, including the status of guaranteed minimum returns for milk, tea and coffee, subsidised fertiliser for coffee and tea farmers, value addition for miraa, and the revival of the macadamia sector.

Wamuchomba also criticised new levies on tea and coffee, the introduction of the Direct Settlement System (DSS) without farmer consent, and the lack of subsidised animal feeds for the dairy sector. She noted that farmers had gone to court to suspend the DSS in the coffee sector.

“Promises unkept is betrayal,” she wrote, adding that she personally campaigned for Ruto and urged farmers to support him.

Tea sector crisis deepens

Her latest post follows sharp criticism she made earlier on Saturday, 22 November, where she warned that the tea sector was heading for collapse due to mismanagement and heavy debts at the Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA).

She claimed that KTDA had operated on borrowed money for three years and even used loans to pay this year’s low bonuses. She said auctioneers had notified some factories over unpaid loans.

Wamuchomba questioned the president’s claim in his State of the Nation Address that tea export revenues had risen from Ksh138 billion in 2022 to Ksh215 billion in 2024. She asked why factories could not pay farmers decent bonuses if these figures were accurate. She added that Parliament had failed tea farmers by not addressing the crisis.

She also criticised the Tea Amendment Bill 2025, saying it would add a new levy on factories already under financial strain.

The MP said some government figures had tried to silence her, including suggestions that she should be arrested for inciting farmers. She vowed to continue speaking out and said she would convene a meeting with tea farmers, factories and stakeholders to organise a petition to the government.

Her concerns come at a time when tea farmers face lower bonuses across the country. KTDA figures show that farmers in 21 tea-growing constituencies earned between Ksh0.80 and Ksh19.10 less per kilogram compared to last year. Farmers in the Mt Kenya region received between Ksh26 and Ksh57 per kilo, while those in the Rift Valley and South Nyanza got between Ksh10 and Ksh32.

Some factories in Kisii had to pay as little as Ksh10 per kilo, half of last year’s amount. These disparities have angered farmers, who accuse the industry of unfair practices.

The government and KTDA have begun importing nearly 100,000 metric tonnes of subsidised fertiliser to support farmers. The first shipment of 30,000 tonnes arrived in Mombasa and will sell at Ksh2,500 per 50kg bag. KTDA officials said court cases over tendering delayed the arrival by about ten months.