Deputy President William Ruto has been isolated through the six months the government have been fighting COVID-19 therefore it would be “dishonest of the people around the President” to bring him closer towards the end of the fight, those close to him say, explaining why the second-in-command missed the Monday’s COVID-19 conference presided by President Uhuru.
Ruto’s seat, which had been reserved at the event was quickly removed from the venue after it had been confirmed that he was going to make a no show to the event.
The Deputy President was supposed to arrive at the Kenyatta International Conference Center – the venue of the event before the arrival of the President to receive his boss. At exactly 2 pm President Kenyatta’s convoy snaked into the venue, Ruto had not arrived yet, triggering an unquestionable sign that the DP wasn’t going to be in attendance.
Sonko News has established that William Ruto spent his entire Monday at his Karen Residence office, and skipped the President’s event despite receiving an official invitation.
Kanze Dena Mararo, State House Spokesperson, confirmed that Ruto had been invited to the Covid-19 conference.
“He (Ruto) was invited to the National COVID-19 Conference but did not attend. I do not why he skipped the event. His communications team is in a better position to answer that,” Kanze said Monday.
The Director of Communication at the Deputy President’s Office, Emmanuel Talam also confirmed that Ruto had “indeed received the invitation”.
“I am not disputing Kanze’s claim that the Deputy President was invited to the COVID-19 Conference,” said Talam told K24.
Asked why Ruto skipped the vent despite being invited, Talam told K24 that: “How many addresses has the President made before yesterday? They are eleven if I am not wrong, right? Ask [State House Spokesperson] Kanze Dena why they only chose to invite the Deputy President for the 12th address, and not the other 11.”
“If she (Kanze Dena) answers that convincingly and honestly, then I would give a straightforward response on why the DP skipped the event,” added Talam.
When the media house tried to confirm with Kanze if Dr. Ruto hadn’t been invited to the President’s previous Covid-19 addresses, she did not answer her phone.
Asked where the DP was on Monday, September 28, Talam said: “he spent the whole day at his Karen residence office. I am not sure if he followed the COVID-19 Conference on television.”
Sources say the DP traditionally gives his communications team members rest days every Monday after accompanying him on is weekend tours.
“Yesterday, the boss told us we stay off duty as is the case every other Monday,” a member of the DP’s communications team, who spoke in confidence, told K24.
“Had he planned to attend the COVID Conference, which was held on a Monday — our off day — he would have told us in advance to prepare to cover the event, but he did not. He, instead, asked us to honor our rest day,” added the informant.
William Ruto was scheduled to address the conference at 5:50 pm after Prime Minister Raila Odinga’s address.
Ruto’s planned 10-minute speech was to lead to the President’s address, which was scheduled to take around 30 minutes between 6 pm and 6:30 pm.
Reacting to how the events unfolded at the event, Ruto allies took to Twitter to say that there was no way the DP would attend the event which “he has never been a part of”.
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Kericho Senator Aaron Cheruiyot, an ally to the DP said: “Let’s stop the hypocrisy. If William Samoei Ruto’s contribution counted, how comes he has never been invited to any Government of Kenya’s COVID-19 response meeting? Now you want him to join the COVID-19 millionaires in sharing their looting success! No to sanitizing the KEMSA scammers.”
While Soy MP Caleb Kositany wondered why the DP had included in the program for the President’s 12th address on Covid-19 yet the other previous 11 addresses he wasn’t invited.
“The Deputy President has never been invited for any COVID-19 conference, why this one?” Kositany said.
Related: State House blocks Deputy President William Samoei Ruto
