Opposition unveils ‘People’s Budget’, tears into Ruto’s Ksh.4.8 trillion spending plan

The opposition coalition, operating under the banner of the United Alternative Government, has launched a blistering attack on President William Ruto’s administration ahead of the presentation of the 2026/2027 national budget on Thursday, accusing the government of presiding over a fiscally reckless, debt-ridden and anti-poor economic agenda.

In a joint statement read by Wiper Party leader Kalonzo Musyoka on Wednesday, the opposition unveiled what it termed the “People’s Budget,” an alternative fiscal framework which it says prioritises education, healthcare, job creation and lowering the cost of living while reducing the country’s fiscal deficit.

Kalonzo described the government’s proposed budget as “the largest spending plan in the history of the Republic of Kenya,” arguing that it is built on unsustainable borrowing and misplaced priorities.

He was flanked by fellow opposition co-principals, including Democracy for Citizens Party (DCP) leader Rigathi Gachagua, his Democratic Party of Kenya (DP) counterpart Justin Muturi, and Jubilee Deputy Party Leader Dr. Fred Matiang’i during the address.

“I have been in public service for over four decades. I have sat at cabinet tables, at the Office of the Vice President and peace negotiations. I have seen Kenya at its best and I have seen what bad governance does to a people who deserve so much better than they have been given,” Kalonzo said.

“Nothing, though, in all these years of public life, has prepared me for the cruelty of this budget. Because that is what it is. Not just incompetence and miscalculation but cruelty.”

According to the opposition, the government’s proposed Ksh.4.82 trillion expenditure plan far exceeds projected revenues of Ksh.3.63 trillion, leaving a deficit of Ksh.1.11 trillion that will have to be financed through borrowing.

Kalonzo termed the debt burden “generational slavery,” arguing that future generations would shoulder the cost of loans they had no role in contracting.

The coalition further faulted the government for what it described as excessive debt servicing, noting that Ksh.1.5 trillion has been allocated to debt obligations and pensions.

“To put that in language every Kenyan understands, interest on domestic debt alone costs more than the entire education budget. We are spending more on paying bankers than on teaching children,” Kalonzo said.

Education emerged as one of the opposition’s key areas of concern, with the coalition accusing the government of failing to adequately fund free education despite constitutional guarantees.

The opposition cited what it described as major funding gaps in Free Primary Education, Junior Secondary School and Free Day Secondary Education programmes, arguing that parents are increasingly being forced to shoulder costs that should be covered by the State.

“Free means free. All the way from Class One to Form Four. For every Kenyan child,” Kalonzo stated, while outlining the coalition’s alternative plan.

The coalition also linked recent cases of unrest and fires in schools to underinvestment in student welfare, safety infrastructure and mental health services.

It criticised the government for allegedly neglecting school safety and failing to provide dedicated funding for student mental health programmes despite a series of incidents in learning institutions across the country.

On healthcare, the opposition renewed its criticism of the Social Health Authority (SHA), describing the scheme as mandatory taxation disguised as healthcare reform.

Kalonzo argued that despite mandatory contributions by Kenyans, many patients continue to experience difficulties accessing services due to system failures and funding gaps.

“SHA, in its current form, is not a health policy. It is a compulsory tax with a hospital logo,” he said.

The coalition also questioned the government's decision to proceed with what it described as a Ksh.104 billion technology contract linked to SHA while public health facilities continue to face shortages of medicines and personnel.

It pledged to cancel the contract and redirect the funds to frontline healthcare services if elected as the next government in the 2027 General Election.

The opposition also took issue with several proposals contained in the Finance Bill 2026, accusing the government of introducing indirect taxes that disproportionately affect ordinary Kenyans.

Among the measures criticised were the proposed 16 per cent Value Added Tax (VAT) on mobile money platform fees and a 25 per cent excise duty on mobile phones at network activation.

“The grandmother in Wajir waiting to receive Ksh.1,000 from her grandson working in Mombasa will pay more for that transfer. The mama mboga in Gikomba paying her supplier through M-Pesa will pay more,” Kalonzo said.

He further warned that expanded powers for the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) to access taxpayer information could create what he termed a “tax surveillance state” that exposes citizens to excessive monitoring and punitive taxation.

The coalition additionally accused the government of seeking to dispose of strategic national assets to address fiscal challenges.

It specifically cited concerns over the future of the Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) and the government's stake in Safaricom, arguing that such assets should not be sold without extensive public participation and parliamentary approval.

“These are our crown jewels. They are what this country built across generations,” Kalonzo said.

As an alternative, the United Alternative Government proposed a Ksh.4.32 trillion spending plan, which it says would reduce the fiscal deficit to Ksh.593.5 billion, equivalent to 2.8 per cent of GDP, compared to the government’s projected 5.3 per cent.

The coalition says it would increase revenue collection through efficiency measures and compliance rather than imposing new taxes.

The proposed “People’s Budget” includes increased allocations for education and health, restoration of programmes such as Linda Mama and Edu Afya, a Ksh.80 billion youth employment initiative, the abolition of the Affordable Housing Levy and the removal of taxes proposed on mobile money services and mobile phones.

The coalition also pledged to reduce expenditure at State House and the National Intelligence Service (NIS) and redirect the savings towards irrigation projects aimed at boosting food security.

“We will also implement a Single Treasury Account to eliminate ghost workers, duplicate payments and pending bills that are an Auditor General-verified leakage of Ksh250 billion per year,” Kalozno stated.

“Every contract requires confirmed exchequer backing before work begins. Any accounting officer with an adverse Auditor-General report must steps aside immediately.”

Kalonzo also accused the government of failing to honour promises made to victims of the June 2024 anti-government protests, noting that the proposed budget contains no specific allocation for compensation or rehabilitation of victims of police brutality and other human rights violations.

Addressing Members of Parliament ahead of debate on the budget and Finance Bill 2026, the opposition leader urged lawmakers to reject what he described as harmful fiscal proposals and instead defend the interests of ordinary Kenyans.

“You were not elected to be a rubber stamp. A mother woke before dawn, walked to a polling station, queued for hours, and marked your name because she believed you would go to Nairobi and fight for her,” he said.

“When you vote to approve a Ksh.28.4 billion Free Day Secondary capitation shortfall, you vote against the children of the poor. When you vote to approve an Ksh.11 billion hole in SHA, you guarantee that the next Kenyan will be turned away at a hospital gate. When you vote for sixteen percent VAT on M-Pesa platform fees, you tax the only bank most Kenyans have ever had.”

The opposition maintained that its alternative budget offers a people-centred approach focused on easing the economic burden on households while restoring accountability in public spending.

“We came to write a different budget entirely, one built on the principle that in the Republic of Kenya, the government serves the people, not the other way around,” Kalonzo said.