President William Ruto on Wednesday, August 28, 2024, kicked back with a rousing welcome in the lakeside city of Kisumu after he completed his development tour of Migori County.
Ruto, who landed at the city’s airport Wednesday evening was welcomed by Governor Anyang’ Nyong’o before his convoy snaked through the Oginga Odinga street where hundreds of residents swarmed the roads in chants.
Ruto had come to the city for a rest at the Kisumu state lodge ahead of a packed schedule on Thursday, August 29, 2024, which will be culminated by presiding over the homecoming ceremony of Treasury cabinet secretary John Mbadi at his backyard in Magunga- Suba-South constituency.
However, the massive crowd stopped his motorcade in the streets, and he seized the opportunity to address them, albeit his official tour of the lakeside city will begin on Saturday, August 31, 2024.
President @WilliamsRuto in Kisumu County: pic.twitter.com/c3PCrLrdxC
— Hussein Mohamed, MBS. (@HusseinMohamedg) August 28, 2024
After including two of Nyanza’s leaders in his cabinet and setting up Raila Odinga on a path to claim African Union Commission’s seat, Ruto is enjoying the goodwill of the residents in the region.
In the 2022 presidential elections, Ruto only managed to garner 2.3 per cent of the votes in Kisumu against Raila’s 97 per cent. Migori gave Ruto 15 per cent of the vote against Raila’s 84 per cent, Homa Bay gave him less than one per cent while Siaya County fetched Ruto a paltry 1.5 per cent of the vote.
In his recent tour and newfound dalliance with the opposition party, it remains unclear how the 2027 political formations will pan out but a second term is not far out of the picture.
During his four-day tour of the Luo-Nyanza region, the head of state will be retreating to the Kisumu state lodge after visiting each of the four counties.
He is set to commission a water project in Oyugis town, inspect a fish market together with Homa Bay governor Gladys Wanga and launch the Rusinga ring road in Suba North.
Similarly, he is set to preside over the homecoming ceremony of Energy and Petroleum cabinet secretary Opiyo Wandayi on Friday, August 30, 2024, after commissioning the Mageta island solar mini-grid, launching a market and launching a rice mill in Siaya County.
