President William Ruto during the 3rd National Executive Retreat to review Government performance meeting held at KCB leadership centre on Thursday. June 19. [Jonah Onyango, Standard] ODM’s reaffirmation of a deal that culminated in the broad-based government solidified President William Ruto’s 2027 re-election chances. ‘Tutam’ is not a mere possibility, it is a probability as ‘Wantam’ slogans gradually capsize. The latter are confronted by a fate similar to that of the hyped Titanic, a British luxurious ship that sank in the North Atlantic Ocean on April 14, 1912 after hitting an iceberg on its maiden voyage. The irony is that builders of…
Author: By Alexander Chagema
Administration police along muindi mbingu city market guarding the CBD from the Saba Saba protesters in Nairobi on 7th July 2025.[ David Gichuru, Standard] For more than one week, blogger Ndiang’ui Kinyagia made Kenyans incessantly bark up the wrong tree. And even when the Director of Criminal Investigations Mohamed Amin said he did not know the whereabouts of Mr Ndiang’ui, nobody believed him. This offers a lesson on the ramifications of perception; that once embedded, it is difficult to turn it around. Amid executive nonchalance and silence when things started going south, Kenya Kwanza acquired the reputation of an ogre,…
President William Ruto and his Deputy Kithure Kindiki during the 22nd National Prayer Breakfast at Safari Park Hotel, Nairobi. May 28, 2025. [Elvis Ogina, Standard] Renowned scholar Ngugi wa Thiongo, who once said Kenya’s elite is the death of hopes, dreams and beauty, gave up the ghost on Wednesday last week, the day Kenya’s elite were taking us through the facade of national prayers and tendering conditional apologies: “If we wronged you, forgive us”. If I may, how national is the National Prayer Breakfast when it is clearly an exclusive, elitist teaser? What is the rationale behind holding prayers in…
Journalists covering a past Council of Governors press conference. [File, Standard] US President Donald Trump is the latest to launch a frontal attack on the remaining bulwark against executive impunity: a free media. Trump is well represented locally by the likes of Homa Bay MP Peter Kaluma, who recently called for the cancellation of BBC’s licence for airing an unflattering exposé of police brutality in Kenya. Two weeks ago, Trump signed an executive order directing the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) to stop funding for Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) and National Public Radio (NPR), ostensibly for being biased and spreading…
President William Ruto chairs a meeting of the Committee of African Heads of State and Government on Climate Change on the sidelines of the African Union Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on February 17, 2025. [File, Standard] Bob Marley’s exhortation to African nations to unite has never been more urgent than now. The continent is weary of wars, fights and disputes that are inimical to its growth. Arguably the richest continent in terms of natural resources, Africa is dirt poor and destitute. It lacks the wherewithal to extract and turn those resources into wealth for its people, thus creating room…
President William Ruto addressing residents at Ol Kalou town in Nyandarua county on April 03, 2025, during his Mt Kenya Region Tour. [Kipsang Joszeph, Standard] President William Ruto’s spiel about inheriting empty coffers rings hollow. It could, however, provide the pathway to his re-election in 2027. Under President Uhuru Kenyatta, the government ran somewhat smoothly, certainly better than Kenya Kwanza has done in its more than two years at the helm. Systems worked, and they couldn’t possibly have been running on dry. The logical explanation for the morass the country is wading through, in light of recent claims by former…
DCI officers and police block former UDA Secretary General Cleophas Malala from accessing Butere Girls High School students amid controversy over Echoes of War play at Kirobon Girls’ School in Nakuru, on April 9, 2025. [Kipsang Joseph, Standard] A statement by the police on last week’s State fiasco in Nakuru vindicates Rigathi Gachagua’s claim that messaging across government departments is done from a central point. It is preposterous for the police high command to condemn excessive use of force by police officers who tear-gassed Butere Girls students in Nakuru and arrested former Kakamega Senator Cleophas Malala…
President William Ruto addressing residents at Ol Kalou town in Nyandarua county on April 03, 2025 during his Mt Kenya Region Tour. [Kipsang Joszeph, Standard] Many people have wondered why President William Ruto appears to be out of touch with reality. A bigger percentage of what he enumerates as his government’s achievements are abstract. The reason is that his advisors feed him misinformation and shield him from the truth. The Social Health Authority, for instance, is comatose, but leaders close to the President swear it is the best thing that has ever happened in Kenya. However, their propensity to leave…
Mumias East MP Peter Salasya is whisked away by security officers after he was attacked by goons during a football match between Harambee Stars and Gabon at Nyayo Stadium in Nairobi, on March 23, 2025. [File, Standard] A lot played out last week that depicted a country in turmoil and getting consumed by anger. Dagoretti North Member of Parliament Beatrice Elachi lost her son, and some netizens went gaga. Mumias East Member of Parliament Peter Salasya went to watch a football match at Nyayo National Stadium but got a hiding and was ejected unceremoniously by goons. ‘Ruto must go’ chants…