President Ruto Fires Back At Raila over G2G Oil Deal

President William Ruto now says that the opposition is on an expedition to unearth dirt in his administration less than one year after trouncing its chief leader, former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, in the August 2022 General Election. 

Ruto, while closing the two-day Government officials retreat in Nairobi on Friday, stated that the dossier released by Raila on the government-to-government oil deal was baseless and inconsequential. 

He said the deal was necessary to ease the pressure on the Dollar.

He argued that pressure on the Greenback had resulted in an oil shortage in the country.

The President explained that the Government is not a broker in the deal but a mere guarantor for international oil firms to supply the crucial commodity for six months on credit.

“The international oil companies sell fuel directly to oil marketers in Kenya. The entire process is private sector-driven,” he said.

President Ruto made the remarks on Friday evening during the closing of the two-day Government officials retreat in Nairobi.

The meeting sought to assess the administration’s one-year progress. 

The remarks by Ruto came a day after the opposition chief Raila Odinga labelled the Government-to-Government deal as a major scandal in waiting.

Raila said the deal is riddled with fraudulent dealings that have roped in senior officials in President William Ruto’s government.

“Well, the deal was a scam for which we now demand full disclosure and full accountability. It is corrupt and rotten to the core,” Raila said.