President William Ruto on Thursday asserted that he will remain committed to ensure that the two-thirds gender rule has been fully implemented in his United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party and in the Kenya Kwanza government at large.
During the launch of the Women Governors Caucus G7 Strategy in Nairobi, Ruto said that his government has pursued radical strategies to actualize the constitution’s gender inclusion threshold and will lead at the front in showcasing his pledge.
He therefore tasked the UDA party chairperson Cecily Mbarire to formulate a new set of laws that will require a male presidential candidate to have a female running mate and vice versa.
“When Riggy G (DP Rigathi Gachagua) and myself agree on how things will go in the future we must also agree that going forward if a man is a candidate for president the woman must be a running mate and if a woman is a candidate then a woman is the candidate then a man should be a running mate,” Ruto said amid a cheering crowd.
He added: “We must be deliberate and intentional about it otherwise it will never happen.”
Ruto said that the same should also be made mandatory for Governors and all leadership positions within the party.
He expressed confidence that other party leaders will welcome the proposal to fully achieve the 2/3 gender rule.
“We will do this not because we want to do anything against men but we want to balance so that we move together,” he said.
The Head of State hailed women for their reliability in actualising their mandates, narrating how he has always received unequivocal support from women since his days as Deputy President.
“When I ran into political turbulence as deputy president, more women stood by me than men in my team. And that is a fact. In the last election, more women voted for me than men,” he said.
“Therefore supporting me is the easiest thing for me. Apart from the fact that in my family I have more women family members than men.”
He further urged men to be the biggest champions of protecting women against Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) particularly in regions that have proven prevalence in practicing the vice.
G7 is a caucus bringing together the seven elected women governors in Kenya.
They include Ann Waiguru(Kirinyaga) who doubles as Council of Governors chairperson, Susan Kihika(Nakuru), Wavinya Ndeti(Machakos), Fatuma Achani(Kwale), Kawira Mwangaza(Meru) and Cecily Mbarire(Embu).
The caucus seeks to empower and support women leaders in demonstrating efficient, transformational and strategic governance within the devolved structures.
