The Second National Executive Retreat of the Kenya Kwanza administration came to an end on a stiff on Wednesday, February 21, as underperforming Cabinet Secretaries and their Principal Secretaries were put on notice.
President William Ruto addressing the attendees during the last meeting urged the Cabinet Secretaries to work harder in delivering their mandate, citing several areas lagging the country behind.
"As much as we have done well, we can do more. There is a lot of room for us to do better than we have done," Ruto stated.
Cabinet Secretary (CS) for Interior Kithure Kindiki particularly received major heat over the backlog of passport production, which was causing major delays for Kenyans aspiring to move abroad in search of jobs.
The president argued that the backlog was denying thousands of Kenyans from applying for jobs fronted by the government, citing the recent 2500 nursing jobs where the government received only 500 applications.
The head of state further indicated that Kindiki was now on a three-month notice, directing him to expedite the issuance of passports by solving issues affecting the same at the Nyayo House.
Ruto also advised his administration to work in harmony and avoid fighting each other within the government, advocating for a cohesive administration that would fulfil their promises to Kenyans.
"Our success is going to be the collective success of each one of us. Do not allow your colleague to fail, or undermine your colleague because if one fails, it is your failure," Ruto added.
During the three-day retreat, Ruto lectured the Members of Parliament (MPs) after they admitted to not knowing about the existence of 2500 nursing job opportunities in Saudi Arabia, listed on the NEAIMS portal.
“I have heard some of you say you are not aware! Where do you want me to stand to tell you, which volume do you want so that you can hear?” Ruto posed.
“They were advertised in the press, I have talked about this thing in every meeting. When you are seated those meetings, after that aren’t you supposed to find out where these vacancies are?”
The government's efforts to deliver on promises to Kenyans during the campaign season are visible after the Ministry of Labour flagged off the first cohort of 500 workers to Saudi Arabia, Oman, Germany, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in February.
