Wamuzi News Ke
This week, former Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka threw an unrestricted political punch at President William Ruto’s government, pointing the finger at the latter for intentionally ignoring and employing deceitful tactics in relation to the stalled Tseikuru-Wundanyi road project in Taita Taveta County.
The roasting from Kalonzo has signaled one of the strongest clashes between the veteran politician and the state house in recent months, thus raising the possibility of the political atmosphere being heated further towards the 2027 general elections.
The whole thing started when President Ruto openly downplayed the worries regarding the stalling of the Tseikuru road, stating that the leaders who are talking about it are just engaging in “political opportunism” and not in helping the country with development complications. Kalonzo, on his part, went on the attack, maintaining that the road’s deterioration is a lived reality for people in the area and not just a matter of campaign rhetoric.
During a political rally held in Taita Taveta, Kalonzo, making his statement, attributed the deafness of the government to the constant cries of local leaders and constituents for many years.
He then went on to imply that the non-fulfillment of the road has left the economy paralyzed and the people deprived of market and service access and that the suffering of thousands is due to Ruto’s naked arrogance. He challenged Ruto to make a trip to the affected area and “experience the agony for himself,” branding allegations of political exaggeration as baseless.
Kalonzo’s intervention has sparked a debate that has permeated even through the political and social media platforms, with critics calling the government’s way of facing the problem a true picture of deeper governance issues and lack of infrastructure in coastal regions.
The people who back Kalonzo see the road’s bad condition as an indication of the government’s neglect and unaccountability in national development planning in general.
The Tseikuru–Wundanyi road, which was previously seen as a roadway that would link rusty agricultural areas and key markets, has sunk to such a state that it is almost impossible to travel on it and at the same time has created a very high transport cost and cut off some of the far-flung areas.
Business people and transport providers have come to increasingly warn that neglect of the road will do nothing but cause the economic growth of the Taita Taveta region to be reversed.
Political observers say that Kalonzo’s bold approach might lead to the opposition getting fired up and the whole issue of the road being portrayed as indicative of people’s needs not being met by the government.
This clash, along with the existing sharp polarization in the political scenario of Kenya, will no doubt add to the criticism of the differentials in infrastructure provision and equitable development among counties.
As the disagreement gets hotter, the positions of both parties seem to be very firm. This might imply that the Tseikuru road issue could be one of the major points in the battle of political ideology that is taking shape ahead of the next general elections in Kenya.
