Deputy President William Ruto's hustler narrative has, for years, identified him with casual labourers and nothing reinforces that fact than when he hopped onto aexcavator and attempted to operate it.
While launching projects in Kwale and Mombasa Counties on Saturday, September 14, the DP demonstrated his skills in operating the excavator with the assistance of one of the project's drivers.
According to a short video seen by Kenyans.co.ke, Ruto, dressed in a red reflector jacket, occupies the driver's seat and attempts to control the excavator's bucket to scoop soil from the ground.
He launched a sewerage system in Changamwe where he promised that youth from the region would be the first to be considered for the job.
In Kwale, Ruto launched the construction of Pemba Dam Intake and Treatment Works which are expected to produce about 3,000 cubic metres per day.
The two projects are estimated to cost the state Ksh286 million and is likely to serve 800,000 residents of Kwale and Mombasa counties.
The symbolism of such a grand attempt is not lost to politicians, as Ruto is just one of many politicians who have attempted to operate heavy machinery to humanise themselves to the electorate. In January 2014, his boss, President Uhuru Kenyatta, took to the wheel while launching the Galana Kulalu food security project.
The project, which was one of his flagship projects valued at Ksh7 billion, has hit a snag after a company, Green Arava, abandoned it after reportedly pocketing Ksh5.9 billion.
Uhuru took the drivers seat once again in 2017 when he surprised students at Maasai Girls High School with a gift of a bus that he later drove.
The visibly excited students cheered the President on as he drove the bus with teachers and schoolgirls on board.
In 2010, former Prime Minister Raila Odinga also showcased his skills behind the wheel while launching the construction of the Ndori-Ng’iya road in Siaya County.
