President William Ruto has urged the new Cabinet Secretaries sworn in on Friday to shun corruption, become effective communicators and embrace austerity measures.
Ruto who spoke when the CSs took the oath of office at State House, Nairobi said the officers must be firm and deliberate in pushing for the implementation of government programmes.
The President cautioned the CSs against tolerating corruption in their dockets, saying the officers must work extra hard to eliminate the vice in their portfolios.
"I expect you to serve the people of Kenya with dedication, professionalism and fairness,'' Ruto said.
Ruto warned the CSs against talking down Kenyans, saying they must learn to be patient with the public when communicating government programmes.
"While we must be firm and effective in our actions we should also approach our engagements with compassion and patience particularly when communicating with the public,'' he said.
The President told the CSs that part of their will be working to address concerns raised by Kenyans over the government agenda.
"We must do more to minimise misunderstanding among all citizens in the collective task of national transformation,'' he said.
In the wake of what the President termed as limited fiscal space and austerity measures, Ruto asked the CSs to "make do with less than expected''.
"It is important that we continuously clarify the state of affairs and articulate our vision embracing short-term austerity for long-term prosperity while prioritising investment in the multipliers of opportunity and abandoning expenditure on consumption,'' the president said.
The President said that for the government to function efficiently and articulate the austerity position effectively, CSs must be transparent, accountable and efficient in managing public resources
"We must be excellent stewards of public resources taking a strong stand against corruption and wastage,'' Ruto said.
The President said that as the government's Bottom-Up Transformationon agenda progresses, the government must get it right
"I trust that you will be the officers to rely on for wisdom, strength and courage,'' he said promising to provide the CSs with all the support and resources they may need.
