'I am a marked man in Parliament,' Sifuna says on skipping Ruto's State of the Nation address

The legislator claimed that parliamentary speakers were instructed to silence opposition figures, hindering them from speaking truth to power. 

“For me, I am a marked man in that House. Both Speakers are under instructions to reign in on key figures in the Opposition to make sure that we don’t speak truth to power. You just say ng’we and are you are out for three months. You shout again and you’re out for six months," said Sifuna. 

Speaking on Citizen TV's Daybreak Show early Thursday, Sifuna explained that his non-attendance was because of his distrust in Ruto's ability to honestly depict the nation's situation. 

“I suspected that I was going to shout and say that, that is a lie,” Sifuna said.

The Nairobi Senator argued that Ruto should acknowledge the nation's challenges, criticizing the Kenya Kwanza regime for glossing over issues, instead of mitigating genuine struggles faced by Kenyans.

“We wake up to new levies and penalties for hawking peanuts every day, honestly, Kenyans are at a breakpoint,” Sifuna said.

“The State of the Nation is the state of the people, if you want to know the state of the nation, just speak to the people. If you have a president speaking to Parliament for a whole hour and he does not say how many jobs he has created, that tells you that there is a problem,” he added.

Sifuna called for a truthful examination of the nation's difficulties, expressing concern that the Government prioritizes international creditors over the well-being of ordinary Kenyans.

“You cannot tell us about how happy the creditors that you are going to repay are when people are not able to service their debts and are auctioned every day. Must Kenyans fall down and die for us to meet these obligations?” he posed.

In a Senate debate on Wednesday, November 15, Sifuna mentioned a drinking game he played during the speech, attributing his inebriation to what he perceived as half-truths and lies from the president.

“By the end of the President’s speech, we were extremely inebriated because of the half truth and open lies we believe the president told before the house of Parliament,” he revealed.

On his part, Thirdway Alliance party leader Ekuru Aukot characterized Ruto's speech as more focused on United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party politics than addressing the nation's actual state. 

Aukot called for an assessment of Ruto's political promises in contrast to the current situation, challenging the narrative that the president's numerous trips have significantly benefited Kenya.

“The Government Spokesperson said that the 39 trips he (Ruto) took have brought in more than Ksh.2 trillion, but what is the effect of those trillions on Kenya’s economy? What is the common good that has come out of it?” he queried.

Additionally, Aukot criticized the lack of clarity on Kenya's national debt and the government's repayment plans. He emphasized the importance of considering the impact on the lives of ordinary citizens rather than theoretical perspectives.

Also on the morning program panel, National Assembly Chief Whip Silvanus Osoro defended Ruto, saying that the Government is well aware of the country’s difficulties.

The South Mugirango MP further explained the limitations in reducing fuel prices, attributing it to the country's high debt and the absence of fuel subsidies.

“It is just a select of countries that have had their prices at the pump reduced because maybe they’ve worked through the subsidy, but we cannot do that because our debt as a country is high,” he remarked.