President William Ruto returned to the country on Monday, June 17, from his trip to Italy and Switzerland aboard a Kenya Airways flight.

The Head of State was received by Interior CS Kithure Kindiki, Interior Principal Secretary Raymond Omollo and National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah. 

Other leaders who received the president were Senate Majority Leader Aaron Cheruiyot and Kenya Airways Authority (KAA) Chairman Caleb Kositany.

His deputy, Rigathi Gachagua, was notably absent at the airport to welcome him back.

President Ruto departed for the G7 summit in Italy on Thursday, June 13, before later joining other world leaders for the Summit on Peace in Ukraine at Bürgenstock, Switzerland.

The president’s choice of the KQ flight comes at a time when he ignited a public debate after he used a chartered flight to the U.S. for a state visit, asserting that a KQ flight would be expensive.

The Head of State later explained to the nation that he had been gifted the chartered flight by his friends at a cheaper cost after he tried to book a KQ flight.

State House later disclosed that the United Arab Emirates Government offered the plane that was used by President Ruto.

A few days ago, his deputy, Gachagua, used a KQ flight from Nairobi to Mombasa, something that sparked mixed reactions on social media.

A section of politicians in the Kenya Kwanza government, including Ichung’wah, were quick to lash out at the DP, with the National Assembly Majority Leader alleging that he was seeking sympathy.