Faith Nyasuguta
South African opposition leader Julius Malema has criticized Kenya’s President William Ruto, accusing him of falling short on the commitments he made to the Kenyan people during his election campaign.
Malema emphasized that the Kenyan president’s actions no longer align with the promises he advocated while urging Kenyans to place their trust in him.
“I don’t know if President William Ruto means it because he said so many things and I cannot locate him these days because the things he said during elections and the things he is doing now are two different things,” said Malema.
Speaking to a large audience at Lukenya University in Makueni County, Kenya, during the inauguration of the Pan-African Institute, Malema criticized the president for not aligning his actions with his words and attempting to eliminate the use of the US dollar in African trade.
“I don’t know, because I heard him saying we need to do away with the dollar and build our own but his actions are not speaking to anything of doing away with the dollar,” he said.
Malema, the leader of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) Party, criticized the president for deviating from the “true cause of the African freedom fighters who were killed and tortured by the colonialists.”
He deemed it inappropriate for the Kenyan Head of State to smile and shake hands with the United Kingdom’s King Charles and Queen Camilla during their recent visit to the country.
“The Kenyan army is a product of Mau Mau rebellion, and those who killed our people in the Mau Mau rebellion cannot be saluted by the same army of the children of those who were killed during Mau Mau rebellion. We have a duty to stay true to the cause.”
Malema emphasized that Africans have a duty to remind the King and Britain of their actions during the colonial era and the impact on the African people.
“Indeed, he showed no remorse. He said this was bad; it shouldn’t have happened, but he fell short of, I apologise. He will never say he is sorry because he thinks that his race makes him superior, and he is not qualified to apologise to those who are junior to him.”
Additionally, Malema urged the Kenyan government to take a firm stance, emphasizing the need to choose between embracing Pan-Africanism or aligning with neo-colonialism.
In a recent development, the South African opposition leader advised his Kenyan counterpart, Raila Odinga, to retire from politics and make way for new leadership. This suggestion followed Odinga’s dispute of the election results, which declared President Ruto as the winner.
Malema’s remarks coincide with growing frustration among Kenyans due to the soaring cost of living, coupled with increased fuel prices and other commodities.
These issues were among the promises made by President Ruto during the campaign, pledging significant reductions upon taking office, but they are yet to materialize, leaving them as unfulfilled assurances.
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