President William Ruto yesterday told opposition leader Raila Odinga that criticism of the Kenya Kwanza government would not stop it from correcting the mess created by the past administration.

Ruto said his government has fixed its eyes firmly on taking the country to the right track and would not be distracted by Azimio-One Kenya leaders, led by Raila.

He said his team was determined to correct the economic mess left by the administration of former President Uhuru Kenyatta and to end extra-judicial killings which, he  added, were rife in the past couple of years.

“The Azimio team must go slow. They have no business lecturing us on what we should do, or not. They are the ones responsible for killing the economy and for working hard to take our country backwards. In fact, we have a huge task correcting this mess. So they (Azimio) must watch us as we get down to work,” Ruto added.

Speaking at Kericho Green Stadium during inter-denominational prayers organised by the county’s clergy to thank God for peaceful elections and transition, Ruto said extra-judicial killings had increased over the years, with innocent people allegedly being targeted by police. He disclosed that  he had issued orders to ensure that such killings don’t recur in Kenya.

“They messed up the country’s economy  and agriculture for the past five years. They should stop lecturing us on what we should do .We know what we are doing. Give us space to correct the mess,” Ruto said.

Referring to Raila’s criticism on the high cost of living, Ruto said his team knows what it is doing to lower the cost of living by supporting areas that boost productivity.

Ruto was accompanied by his deputy, Rigathi Gachagua and several governors, senators and MPs. He revealed that the Hustler Fund would be disbursed from December. “This is part of our deliberate measure to save millions of Kenyans from predatory financial institutions,” he said.

Beneficial projects

Gachagua, on his part, said Ruto’s government is correcting messes created by the past regime. He told public servants to shun politics and serve all Kenyans, adding that the government is focused on projects that will uplift livelihoods.

Tea plucking machines also featured in the prayers, with Kericho Governor Eric Mutai and his Nandi counterpart, Stephen Sang, saying many workers had lost their jobs to mechanisation.

Mutai accused tea companies  of paying paltry revenue and, at the same time, replacing workers with machines; while  Sang called for talks between  Ruto, Gachagua and governors from tea growing regions to find lasting solutions.

But, the President, in his speech, did not touch on the issue. He said the country was on the path to recovery, urging the opposition to stand aside “as we fix the mess they left behind. We want to forget the past that was full of suffering. We are delivering solutions to what Kenyans went through,” he said, adding that he was keen on confronting hunger, insecurity and turning Kenya into an equal-opportunity nation.

“We have disbanded the Special Service Unit that was engaging in extrajudicial killings. We will not relent until we have a secure country,” he said.

“Our plan is to take Kenya forward. That is why we are reducing the cost of fertiliser and other farm inputs,” he added.

Ruto disclosed that the next step would be to add value to agricultural produce.

President Ruto said review of the Competency-Based Curriculum would be just. “We will ensure that education becomes more affordable. We will refine and enrich CBC to benefit everyone,” he said.