A man who ran towards President William Ruto as he was making a speech in
Wajir has spoken out, giving his account of what transpired.
In a video seen by the Star, the man said he had
no ill intentions and that he simply wanted to speak to the President about his
political ambitions.
“Mimi nilitaka kuongea na Rais kwa sababu nasimama kiti ya MCA
huko kwetu,” the man said.
“That was the time the president was summarising his speech, and
I just wanted to greet him, and I didn’t know that my actions would cause
trouble. I am hopeful that I will see him.”
According to the man, he fell on the carpet before the President and was
carried away
The incident occurred as the Head of State was addressing beneficiaries of
the Nyota Fund in Mandera when the unidentified man emerged from the crowd and
rushed towards the stage.
Security officers quickly intervened,
restraining and whisking him away, momentarily disrupting the President’s
remarks.
However, President Ruto intervened, calling on
his security detail to handle the situation calmly.
“Eei, so sorry, leave him alone, let him relax
there. He should sit down somewhere there, and I will see him later,” the
President said, signalling to the officers to ease their response.
The event proceeded without further
interruption.
On February
6, a similar security scare occurred in Mombasa when another unidentified man
ran towards Ruto as he addressed beneficiaries of the Nyota youth empowerment
programme.
The incident happened at the Jomo Kenyatta
Showground, where Ruto was presiding over the disbursement of Sh147 million in
Nyota business start-up capital to 5,880 young entrepreneurs from Mombasa,
Kwale and Taita-Taveta counties.
The President was engaging the crowd from the
podium when he posed a casual question, asking, “Wapi mtu wa mwisho hapa (where
is the last person)?”
Moments later, a man suddenly emerged from the
crowd and ran towards the dais, catching security officers off guard.
As he approached the podium, security aides
quickly moved in to restrain him.
However, Ruto intervened, telling one of the
officers, “Habari yako boss, wachana naye,” urging them to momentarily let the
man speak.
In a light-hearted exchange that drew laughter
from the audience, the President asked the man his name.
“Unaitwa nani?” Ruto asked.
“Naitwa Jeremiah,” the man responded.
“Very good, Jeremiah,” the President said,
jokingly adding, “Naona umeweka box,” in apparent reference to the man’s
hairstyle.
Ruto then asked about his shoes, saying,
“Viatu imepotea wapi?”
“Nimeziwacha,” Jeremiah replied, prompting
laughter from the President and the crowd.
Ruto laughed and urged him to speak, saying,
“Sasa sema, Jeremiah.”
As the man attempted to explain himself, he
began, “Sasa Your Excellency, mimi ni…” before the President interjected,
asking, “Kwanza umetoka wapi (where have you come from)?”
He told the President he had travelled from
Nairobi, adding that he had followed him to various towns.
“Mimi nimetoka Nairobi. Nimekuwa nawe Kisumu,
nimekuwa nawe Nakuru (I have come from Nairobi. I have been with you in Kisumu
and Nakuru),” he said.
The President then sought to establish whether
the man was a beneficiary of the programme, asking, “Kwanza leo wewe ni mtu wa
NYOTA hapa?”
“Mimi sio mtu wa NYOTA hapa (I am not a
beneficiary),” Jeremiah admitted.
At that point, the President told him to wait.
“Sasa wewe utangoja kidogo, wacha nimalizane
na hawa, tutashughulika na wewe (You will wait a little. Let me finish with
these people first, then we will handle your case),” he said.
Another security aide then calmly escorted the
man away from the podium.