Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) leader Oburu Oginga told off critics as he defended President William Ruto’s countrywide tours and economic policies.
Oginga said that even though some people claim Ruto uses the tours, dressed up as launches of development projects, to campaign for re-election, he remains justified in visiting every part of the country.
Speaking at Kiserian in Kajiado County during a fundraiser for the SDA Church at Kajiado Field, the ODM leader and Siaya senator also defended the government’s borrowing plans. He argued that borrowing locally serves the country better than relying on external financiers that charge high interest rates.
“I have lived in this country for 80 years, and, Your Excellency, I can tell you the type of energy you have, moving all over the country, jumping up and down. I have never seen any president doing that since I was born,” he said.
He added, “This is only done during campaigns. Some people might say that you are campaigning throughout, but campaigning throughout is God-given. If it is a campaign, I don’t believe you are campaigning but inspecting development projects.”
Oburu questioned why Kenyans complained about the large gap in budget funding, given that the government chose to borrow locally.
He said, “I am a finance expert, and I can explain this country’s financing and the level of borrowing. We borrow from our own people. We will not beg from the international market. We want to trade with them, not be beggars.”
He added that borrowing within the country is the right approach, saying, “What do those other countries owe you that you think they can give you money for nothing? They exploit you when you take money from them. They charge you heavily, and it benefits them.”
The ODM boss pointed to the National Infrastructure Fund and the Housing Levy as examples of efforts that can strengthen the country’s financial independence.
He said, “We have the housing levy. People complain, but we can see the results from the collections. The impact is clear. You raise money from within to develop our country, and that matters. All countries face deficits, what counts is how you raise funds to cover them.”
