President-elect William Ruto on Thursday, August 25, graced the swearing-in ceremony of newly elected Nairobi County Governor Johnson Sakaja.
The ceremony was held at the Kenyatta International Convention Center (KICC) in Nairobi Central Business District.
Here is his full speech.
"Your Excellency Governor Johnson Arthur Sakaja and your good Deputy James Njoroge Muchiri and your families, elected leaders present here, the Director General of the NMS (Nairobi Metropolitan Services) and the great people of Nairobi good afternoon, hamjambo.
Let me join the people of Nairobi in congratulating you Governor Johnson Sakaja, your deputy and your team for a wonderful election period that I shared with you and many other Nairobians and Kenyans.
We have come here to witness your inauguration as the governor of Nairobi. I want to say from my family and I congratulations. From the UDA and Kenya Kwanza family congratulations. You have made us proud.
I want to take this opportunity at this very early moment not only to congratulate you but also to wish you well as you take over the reins as governor of its great city which is also the capital of the Republic of Kenya.
As I congratulate you governor, I want to also congratulate all the other governors who are being sworn in today across Kenya. I know about 45 governors will be sworn in today or have been sworn in already. I want to say to all governors of the Republic of Kenya, congratulations.
And I pledge that the government of Kenya will work with all the governors in making Kenya a great nation.
In a very special way, allow me to pass very special congratulations to the women elected as governors of the republic of Kenya. In this election, Kenyans made yet another historic decision. From the three who were elected in 2017, we now have seven women elected as governors and I want to say congratulations to the women of Kenya and those who have been elected.
Very special congratulations to Fatuma Achani, elected Governor of Kwale County. Very special congratulations to Cecily Mbarire, the elected governor of Embu County. Very special congratulations to Anne Mumbi Waiguru the elected governor of Kirinyaga County. Very special congratulations to Faith Kawira, the elected governor of Meru County.
Very special congratulations to Wavinya Ndeti, the elected governor of Machakos County. Very special congratulations to Gladys Wanga, the elected governor of Homa Bay County. And of course very special congratulations to Susan Kihika Mburu, the elected governor of Nakuru County.
To all these great women, we wish you well as you take over the responsibilities of governor in your counties. And to all the other governors who have been elected, I want to say just two things to our governors starting with my good friend Governor Johnson Sakaja, you will have the undivided support of the government of Kenya as you discharge your responsibilities in your counties.
I know, having been chair of the intergovernmental budget and economic council, that we have had challenges on matters to do with the release of shareable revenue on time. I want to commit to all our governors that the government of Kenya going forward will make it possible that the shareable revenue will be released in time and in accordance with the law and the constitution so that we can better manage our counties and make it possible for you to deliver on your mandate and the commitment you have made to the constituents in your counties.
We are also going to work with you on making sure that counties build the capacity to raise resources on their own source of revenue channel to make it possible for additional resources so that you can better deliver on services and on the mandate that you have been appropriated to by the constitution in your counties.
I also want to commit that we will work hard. I have already discussed this with the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) on how to raise revenue. I want to commit that we will work together with you so that Kenya can live within its means and there will be no tall men or big girls, that the rule is going to equalize every Kenyan so that each one of us can pay their taxes.
There will be no exemption for anyone on account of paying taxes. I want to commit that going into the future, the rule of law will the benchmark. That all of us, irrespective of who we are, will be expected to live by the rule of law.
I want to commit to all my friends in leadership that we are going to work together to make Kenya a country of opportunity. That every citizen of the Republic of Kenya, working hard, will access opportunities without the necessity of having any connection.
As we go into the future, and especially in the city of Nairobi- you know, my brother Johnson, that you are a miracle candidate. That your election as the Governor of Nairobi is indeed a miracle and it wouldn’t have happened without God.
And I want to appreciate that you have understood and underscored the place of faith and God in your election. I want to tell you my friend and brother that we will work with you, we have confidence in you, we are proud of you, and we know the city of Nairobi has the best it can have as the county governor.
I also will be available to consult, you know the commitments we made to the people of Nairobi with respect to market infrastructure, and the commitment we have made in matters collection and management of garbage. The commitment we have made in transport infrastructure for the great city of Nairobi, and you know the commitment we have made in making sure that every hustle will count in the great city of Nairobi. I will be on hand to support you.
And finally, you and I have already discussed making the rivers of Nairobi places of opportunities, enterprise and business as opposed to what it is today- a place of filth and raw sewage.
You and I have discussed the Nairobi Rivers Commission, I will be looking forward to consultation so that we can set it up and begin to truly make this great city, a city of dignity, and a city of opportunities.
To all my fellow citizens of the Republic, you have spoken to us loudly. I want to ask all the leaders to listen to the loud message that is coming from the citizens of our country. The citizens are speaking to us, loudly, that they want our politics to be non-tribal and peaceful. In this election, we have seen a very new phenomenon, we all voted and the next day we were ready to go to work, and we were ready to go on with our lives and everybody on to their hustle.
That is the loud message that is coming from the people of Kenya to those of us who are leaders. I am asking all of us to listen to what the people of Kenya are saying so that we can conclude the remaining steps of our election in a peaceful, orderly, respectful manner. Respecting all the institutions that will discharge their responsibilities because we are a country governed by the rule of law and the constitution.
I want to conclude by asking all the leaders of the great city of Nairobi, from members of the county assembly, and the workers of the great city of Nairobi to join hands with the new leadership under Johnson Sakaja and take our great city to the next level.
And I want to commit and pledge that we will be available to work with you because Nairobi is our collective business.
Asanteni sana, May the good Lord bless you.”
