Deputy President William Ruto on Thursday returned to Harambee Annex, barely 48 hours after his team showed dissatisfaction in Dr Fred Matiang’i’s elevation in cabinet through an executive order.
In what is believed to be a wider scheme to whittle Ruto’s influence, Matiang’i was appointed to powerful National Development Implementation and Communication Cabinet Committee chair, and will be in charge of supervising government projects.
But on Thursday, the DP put on a brave face and held a meeting with officials drawn from TVET. On Twitter, he insisted that the appointment had nothing to do with his responsibilities as enshrined in the constitution.
“Vocational education and training is the engine of the Big Four; we are ensuring the sector is adequately resourced to develop the capacity of trainers and competencies of our youth.
“In the past year, we have pushed up enrollment to 169,000 students from 90,000 since it is a focal point of realising the country’s development needs. Held consultation with the TVET technical team, Harambee Annex, Nairobi County,” he wrote on Facebook.
A section of Rift Valley legilators led by Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei had read malice in Matiang’i appointment, insisting that it had something to do with 2022 succession politics.
For the better part of Wednesday, Uhuru held lengthy meeting with both Ruto and Matiang’i in Mombasa State House but details still remain scanty. Matiang’i will now supervise all government departments.