Nairobi, Kenya- Presidential hopeful Okiya Omtatah has laid out a bold vision for Kenya, vowing to dismantle the “imperial presidency” and restructure the management of public finances if elected in the next General Election.
Appearing on Citizen TV’s The Explainer on Tuesday night, Omtatah said his administration’s top priority during the first 100 days in office would be restoring constitutional order, particularly in how government funds are controlled and allocated.
“In my implementation, I have anchor chapters. The first thing would be to destroy the imperial presidency. An imperial president is nothing but the power of the past—where he controls both money and Executive power,” Omtatah said.
Independent Treasury and Devolution of Financial Power
Omtatah argued that Article 225(1) of the Constitution supports the creation of an independent National Treasury, which he believes should be autonomous from the Executive arm of government.
According to the Senator, the current setup centralises too much financial power in the presidency, making the Head of State the de facto controller of national development.
“All our problems come from the fact that money is with the President. Like (Chinua) Achebe says, the President holds both the knife and the cake,” he added.
He promised that, under his leadership, budgetary allocations would be entirely approved by Parliament and overseen by the Controller of Budget, removing what he sees as the politicisation of development.
“You cannot have a devolved system of government and still retain a Treasury within the Executive. That contradicts the whole idea of separation of powers.”
“Whenever the President visits a region—whether for a funeral, church service, or public event—you see MPs making impromptu development requests. That’s not how development planning should work,” he said.
Ideology-Driven Candidacy, Not Personal Ambition
Omtatah described his presidential campaign as one grounded in constitutionalism, ideology, and national duty, rather than personal ambition or opportunism.
“I am not running because I want a job or because I think there’s a vacuum. I am running because I believe there is serious work to be done,” he asserted.
The firebrand lawmaker revealed that his bid is being guided by data and research, with a presidential exploratory committee already having surveyed 31 counties across the country to assess his national support.
“We’re conducting a scientific survey through the committee to determine whether or not I’ll run. We’ve covered 31 counties and have 16 more to go,” Omtatah disclosed.
A Constitutional Vision Inspired by the National Anthem
Citing the Swahili version of Kenya’s National Anthem as his source of inspiration, Omtatah reaffirmed that his overarching goal is to faithfully implement the Constitution as the foundation for national reform.
“Our Constitution gives us the tools to fix this country. We just need to implement it. That’s my plan—nothing fancy, just constitutional order,” he concluded.
As Kenya inches closer to the 2027 polls, Omtatah’s entry into the race injects a new layer of ideological debate and institutional reform focus into an increasingly crowded presidential contest.
