NAIROBI, Kenya – DCP Leader Rigathi Gachagua has dismissed an upcoming government forum on Kenya’s Vision 2060 development plan as a public relations exercise intended to mislead Kenyans.
Gachagua said the engagement was scheduled to take place on Tuesday morning at a popular hotel along Mombasa Road in Nairobi.
He claimed the meeting would run from 8am to 1pm and would feature speeches, photographs and dramatic telephone calls designed to promote the government’s long-term agenda.
“Tomorrow morning, the Vision 2060 Afro Cinema lies will continue at a popular hotel, Mombasa Road,” Gachagua said in a statement on Monday.
“The Afro Cinema will start at 8am and end at 1pm. Usual upgraded lies, posturing, photo ops and dramatic phone calls; just drama to hoodwink Kenyans.”
The DCP leader also told those attending the forum that lunch would be provided at the venue.
Gachagua concluded his statement with a popular quotation he attributed to former United States President Abraham Lincoln: “You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all of the time.”
His remarks are the latest attack on President William Ruto’s Vision 2060 initiative, which the government says is intended to guide Kenya’s development after the current Vision 2030 blueprint expires.
Ruto launched a national conversation on the proposed plan in August, inviting Kenyans to participate in shaping the country’s economic, political and social priorities for the three decades after 2030.
The State Department for Economic Planning says the initiative will build on Vision 2030 while addressing emerging issues such as artificial intelligence, technological change, climate action, population growth and regional integration.
The government says discussions on the blueprint will be taken to all 47 counties for public participation before a final document is adopted.
Vision 2060 is expected to retain economic, social and political pillars. Its stated ambitions include transforming Kenya into a globally competitive upper-middle-income country, achieving a net-zero carbon economy and fully digitising public services.
The proposed plan also targets food and water security and seeks to position Kenya as a regional centre for finance, innovation and skilled talent.
A committee of experts chaired by Kisumu Governor Anyang’ Nyong’o has been involved in the preliminary discussions.
Other participants have included former Industrialisation Cabinet Secretary Betty Maina, presidential economic adviser David Ndii and former Vision 2030 Director-General Mugo Kibati.
Gachagua has repeatedly criticised the initiative, arguing that the government should concentrate on fulfilling its existing promises and completing the objectives contained in Vision 2030.
The government maintains that the process is necessary to prepare a national development framework that will guide the country beyond 2030.
