President Uhuru Kenyatta ‘Campaigns’ For Martha Karua As Next DP During Madaraka Day Address

NAIROBI, Kenya, Jun, 1 – Amidst a jubilant crowd at the new look Uhuru Gardens during the Madaraka Day celebrations, President Uhuru Kenyatta appeared to ‘campaign’ for his Azimio La Umoja -One Kenya Alliance political buddies, as he hinted in his speech that Kenyans have the opportunity to vote in a woman as the country’s second in command during the August 9, 2022 elections.

Kenyatta while addressing over 30,000 Kenyans said that a woman for the first time in history has the chance to ‘shatter’ the glass ceiling set by society. 

“In August this year, if it is the wish of the electorate, we have a chance of a woman shattering the glass ceiling by assuming the second-highest office in our Republic, the Office of the Deputy President of the Republic of Kenya,” he said.

Kenyatta has openly as a patron of Azimio La Umoja thrown in his weight for a Raila Odinga presidency with Martha Karua as his deputy.

The decision to nominate Karua as Odinga’s running mate was well received by Kenyans as the pair was described as ‘the best bet’ by their supporters.

Wiper Party leader Kalonzo Musyoka was also in the running to be Odinga’s running mate but he was eventually fronted as the alliance’s chief minister. A position he openly declined in turn deciding to go it alone for the presidency at the time. Now, discussions are ongoing to have Musyoka rejoin the team.

During his speech, Kenyatta hailed his administration’s efforts to include women in key leadership positions saying that their inclusion was imperative for nation-building.

“For a long time, women’s affairs were relegated to the Department of Social Services; where they were grouped with children and persons living with disabilities.  In fact, the first woman to be appointed as a Permanent Secretary happened 24 years after independence. Margaret Githinji was appointed the Permanent Secretary for Commerce and Industry on Maradaka Day of 1987.  And thereafter, the first woman to become a Cabinet Minister was Hon. Nyiva Mwendwa. This happened 32 years after independence, in 1995,” he said.

During his time in office, Kenyatta worked with 11 women in his cabinet who served in various high-profile dockets.

The president further cited the appointment of Fatuma Ahmed as the first woman Major-General of our Defence Forces in 2018, as well as, Nancy Gathungu, the first woman holder of the constitutional office of Auditor-General in 2021.

Noticeably, one of the three arms of government is being headed by a woman, Chief justice Martha Koome, who s the country’s first woman chief justice.

“If our women were part of the liberation struggle, advancing their course intentionally is a duty we owe them and ourselves as a country.  And I am, indeed, proud to have been part of this push for women’s leadership in our Republic,”