'It was the shortest in history,' Kalonzo says as he tears into President Ruto's Parliament speech

Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka has tore into President William Ruto's inaugural speech delivered in a joint Parliament and Senate session on Thursday, labeling it as the shortest ever address a sitting president has made before members of the two Houses in Kenya's history.

Speaking at the Wiper Command Centre in Nairobi on Friday, Kalonzo noted that the speech failed to address pressing fiscal issues currently plaguing the country's economy, a move he says possibly foreshadows that Ruto's administration will struggle to deliver on promises the Kenya Kwanza frontman made while campaigning for his presidential bid.

"President Ruto's speech before Parliament was the shortest a sitting president has ever made before the House.  It failed to address the pertinent issues of our economy and the national standard of living," said Musyoka who was flanked by Wiper officials and MPs.

"It is now our duty to remind them of their campaign promises. Actions speak louder than words. It can never be promises after promises after promises.

According to the Wiper boss, issues such as the high cost of living, fuel and electricity should have been pre-eminent in President Ruto's address.

"My dear Kenyans the first campaign promise by the Ruto administration was lowering of the cost of living. From day one all costs associated with basic living have gone up. The price of unga and that of electricity are beyond the reach of the ordinary mwananchi," he said.

"These are matters we feel should take pre-eminence in these early days just like there was a rush to subsidise fertilizers on September 19, 2022. The same urgency should have first and foremost been applied to the rapidly rising cost of living."  

He also chimed in on a statement that Ruto made in his address which insinuated that he won the presidency without the backing of former president Uhuru Kenyatta.

In the statement, President Ruto went as far as labeling himself the official leader of the opposition and Raila Odinga as the State's preferred candidate in the days leading up to the August 9th polls.

"In 2022 Ruto was still the DP. If he wanted us to believe the ridicule he tried to bestow on President Kenyatta yesterday he could have started by saying that he had to resign when the situation became unbearable," said Musyoka.

"That is the most natural thing for a leader who wants to be held accountable for their principles. Therefore it must be seen by Kenyans that this is a continuation of what President Ruto and Kenyatta started in 2013. I would advise President Ruto to show some respect to a gentleman who has constitutionally handed power over to him."