National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah has stirred fresh political debate after openly criticising former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s continued involvement in Kenya’s day-to-day politics.
Speaking during an interview with NTV on Tuesday, December 31, Ichung’wah questioned whether the former head of state has fully come to terms with the outcome of the 2022 General Election, which saw President William Ruto ascend to power despite Uhuru backing a rival candidate.
The Kikuyu MP argued that instead of settling into the role of an elder statesman, Uhuru appears increasingly preoccupied with undermining the current administration.
“Unfortunately, when I look at President Uhuru Kenyatta, I see a man who is yet to heal from the loss of the 2022 general elections,” Ichung’wah said, adding that the former president seemed to have taken his political fallout with Ruto too personally.
According to Ichung’wah, Uhuru has never fully accepted that his former deputy—whom he openly opposed—went on to win the presidency. He suggested that this unresolved bitterness is what continues to fuel Uhuru’s frequent political interventions.
In what he described as “unsolicited advice,” the Majority Leader urged Kenya’s fourth president to rise above partisan politics and embrace a unifying, statesmanlike role. He pointed to the late former Prime Minister Raila Odinga as an example of a leader who transitioned from active politics to a broader pan-African statesman role.
“When you have had the honour to serve as president of a country for 10 years and you retire, that elevates you to a certain level of statesman,” Ichung’wah said, warning that constant engagement in daily political battles only erodes that stature.
Ichung’wah also revealed that he had previously held discussions with President Ruto on the need to reach out to Uhuru in the interest of national unity, noting that moving the country forward would require collective effort and goodwill.
However, his sharpest remarks came at the tail end of the interview.
“When I look at my good friend former President Uhuru Kenyatta, he looks like a person who tends to overwork to bring others down so that he remains the greatest of all times,” he remarked.
Since leaving office in 2022, Uhuru has remained politically active through his leadership of the Jubilee Party and his support for opposition-aligned coalitions. He has also been vocal on governance issues and continues to play mediation roles in regional peace initiatives across Africa.
Ichung’wah concluded by urging the former president to rise above personal rivalries and view the country’s interests as bigger than himself or President Ruto, saying Kenya’s stability and progress should come first.
