NAIROBI, Kenya — Former Interior Cabinet Secretary Dr. Fred Matiang’i has criticised President William Ruto’s proposal to launch a nationwide conversation on Kenya’s development beyond Vision 2030, describing the initiative as a distraction from what he termed the administration’s constitutional and governance failures.
In a statement posted on Friday, Matiang’i argued that the government should first address insecurity, institutional independence and adherence to the Constitution before initiating discussions on a new long-term national development blueprint.
“President William Ruto’s proposal to launch a national conversation on Kenya’s development post-Vision 2030 is a clear case of misplaced priority. This is only meant to divert our attention from Ruto’s gross violations of the Constitution and leadership failures that are pressuring him to address,” Matiang’i said.
The former Interior CS accused the President of failing to uphold constitutional values while presiding over what he described as worsening insecurity across the country.
“It is a contradiction that Ruto has the temerity to lecture us about human rights and the patriotic clauses of our Constitution when he has failed to address cases of rampant thuggery and the wanton breakdown of law and order in our country,” he said.
Matiang’i claimed that motorists continue to face attacks on major highways, worshippers are increasingly targeted by criminals and political violence has gone unchecked.
He also alleged that public institutions had lost their independence, citing recent remarks by former National Treasury Cabinet Secretary Prof. Njuguna Ndung’u, who accused President Ruto of overrunning government institutions and creating an environment in which public officials act out of fear.
“His former National Treasury Cabinet Secretary, Prof. Njuguna Ndung’u, has become the latest to confirm that Ruto has reduced state institutions into frightened departments that only obey him rather than the Constitution. This is where the so-called new conversation must start,” Matiang’i said.
He questioned whether the President possessed the institutional respect and leadership required to steer a national dialogue.
“Does William Ruto have the basic tolerance and the necessary respectful attitude towards public institutions to mobilize the country and steer the so-called new conversation?” he posed.
The former Cabinet Secretary further argued that the government faces a credibility challenge, pointing to what he described as unfulfilled commitments, including the National Dialogue Committee (NADCO) recommendations and the broad-based government arrangement.
“Then there is the trust deficit that the Ruto administration has come to epitomize. Then there is the NADCO 10-point plan, the Broad-Based Government, and a legion of unfulfilled promises,” he said.
Despite his criticism, Matiang’i expressed optimism about Kenya’s political future, saying voters would have an opportunity to chart a different course in the 2027 General Election.
“As Kenyans, we must NEVER lose hope. We will turn the page on 10 August 2027 and embark on a more trustworthy journey towards fixing our nation,” he said.
President Ruto announced the proposed national conversation during his Special National Address on Thursday, saying the process would seek public views on a successor to Vision 2030 and culminate in a new long-term national development charter anchored in the Constitution.
