Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi has blamed insensitive government officials for the growing anger among the youth over the status of the country’s affairs.
He said the youth want to see a more inclusive government that is sensitive to the emerging issues affecting them, which include the high cost of living and lack of employment opportunities.
“We gave them the ammunition to fight back by showing off our opulence, corruption and wasteful use of public resources. Essentially, they are pointing out how insensitive we are to the impact of our decisions on the well-being of our people in the face of difficulties arising from domestic and external shocks,” he said.
Mudavadi made the remarks when he chaired the inaugural National Development Implementation Committee (NDIC) meeting at the Kenya School of Government in Nairobi.
The meeting was attended by senior government officials including Cabinet and Principal Secretaries, Head of Public Service Felix Koskei, Attorney General Justin Muturi and Solicitor General Shadrack Mose among others.
The meeting took time to observe a minute of silence in honour of the youth who lost their lives during recent protests.
Mudavadi added that young people have called out leaders with a strong message to the government that they are not feeling what is being done.
He insisted on the need to assess whether senior government officials have supported President William Ruto to improve the governance of the country and deliver on his promises of social and economic transformation.
While acknowledging that the Finance Bill 2024 protests were hijacked by criminal elements, he said it is important to refocus minds and efforts on the election pledges.
“In just three years from now, we will be asking our people to renew our mandate to lead this beautiful nation for another five years. The fundamental question is: What will our scorecard look like? We must all strive to win the hearts and trust of the people in the remaining period by rolling up our sleeves and going back to work for them,” Mudavadi said.