I respect you, don't provoke me with insults, Wamalwa tells Ruto
Defence CS Eugene Wamalwa (left) speaks to Deputy President William Ruto (right) during a meeting in Mandera on March 23, 2019. Mr Wamalwa has asked Dr Ruto to leave him alone and concentrate on his presidential campaigns.
What you need to know:
- Mr Wamalwa said the DP insults him whenever he toured Bungoma and Trans Nzoia counties instead of championing the Kenya Kwanza manifesto.
- The CS claimed the DP had opposed his appointment by President Uhuru Kenyatta.
- He recalled how DP Ruto opposed his appointment as Water and Irrigation CS, keeping Mr Wamalwa in the cold for weeks before Mr Kenyatta intervened.
Defence Cabinet Secretary Eugene Wamalwa now wants Deputy President William Ruto to abstain from further insulting him and instead concentrate on promoting his agenda.
Mr Wamalwa Wednesday said the DP insults him whenever he toured Bungoma and Trans Nzoia counties instead of championing the Kenya Kwanza manifesto.
"I respect the DP and I have never insulted him and I do not understand why he is provoking me to take such a stand," Mr Wamalwa said in Nakalila village, Bumula constituency during the inauguration of Kimaeti Senior Chief Shaff Fwamba as a principal administrator.
He was reacting to remarks made by DP Ruto on Tuesday in Trans Nzoia County when he said his community does not beat up women, in an apparent reference to Mr Wamalwa.
During an Azimio rally in Bukhungu last week, Mr Wamalwa claimed that Dr Ruto wanted to slap him.
He also rejected Dr Ruto’s assertion that he influenced his appointment to the Cabinet, noting that the DP had opposed his appointment by President Uhuru Kenyatta.
“The DP did not witness my swearing-in, after opposing the appointment, so let him stop cheating Luhyas," he said.
He recalled how DP Ruto opposed his appointment as Water and Irrigation CS, keeping Mr Wamalwa in the cold for weeks before Mr Kenyatta intervened.
"When I was appointed as CS for Water and Irrigation, DP Ruto demanded that the docket be hived off, and I was only allocated the ministry after irrigation and the money transferred to the CS Treasury," Mr Wamalwa said.
He asked Dr Ruto to concentrate on his campaigns without insulting other leaders.
"As leaders from the Luhya community, we have not toured other parts of the country abusing our colleagues," he said.
He exuded confidence that Azimio la Umoja One Kenya coalition under its presidential candidate Raila Odinga would form the next government and that the Luhya would benefit from the administration.
The CS at the same time issued title deeds to over 6,000 residents in Uwanja Ndege, Bungoma County.
