Economic hardship, unfulfilled campaign promises, corruption top list of Ruto’s govt failures – TIFA
37 per cent of Kenyans have pointed out increased economic hardship as President William Ruto's government's biggest failure, the latest TIFA polls have shown.
According to the pollster, other notable undoings of the Ruto government include failure to keep campaign promises (14 per cent) and increased corruption/dropping of major corruption cases (nine per cent).
"One is that it has become increasingly clear to most Kenyans that making quick and tangible improvements to the dire economic situation inherited from the previous regime has not been as
forthcoming as many had thought, or at least hoped. That is, making campaign promises is one
thing, but actually delivering on them is another," TIFA noted.
Nearly one-quarter of Kenya Kwanza supporters (23 per cent) fail to give the new government credit for any achievement, even if nearly twice as many of the opposing Azimio la Umoja counterparts (54 per cent) likewise give it no credit.
"It has become clear that the success of Kenya Kwanza largely issue-based pre-election campaign has become a major challenge to its continued popularity, given the difficulties it (or whoever had won the election) now faces in making such campaign promises a reality, at least in the short term," TIFA added.
Kenyans pointed out the launch of the Hustler Fund as the most significant achievement of President William Ruto's government. 29 per cent felt that Hustler Fund was Ruto's most notable achievement. About five per cent felt that stabilizing the cost of fertilizer was Ruto's best achievement while four per cent pointed out enhancing national unity/cohesion as the best achievement.
In the next five years, respondents said they want the government to focus on reducing the high cost of living (71 per cent), creating jobs (49 per cent), improving the education system (22 per cent) and reducing government expenditure and public debt (19 per cent).
"Given the personalistic and communal nature of political divisions in Kenya, it cannot be assumed that such performance failures will necessarily lead to an ‘up-tick’ in support for the opposition, though such a development cannot be ruled out. Yet such media attention – especially given recently to security issues (mainly in the north) and transition challenges in the education sector (the Competence-Based-Curriculum and the introduction of the Junior Secondary stage in between primary and secondary school) – may also turn out to be a double-edged sword, if the expectations aroused by such attention are not sufficiently fulfilled," the report added.
Other TIFA findings
Out of the households surveyed, TIFA found that about 17 per cent almost always sleep hungry, while 29 per cent sleep hungry only once in a while. 51 per cent never sleep hungry while three per cent are not sure.
The high cost of living is the biggest problem facing Kenyans at 48 per cent followed by hunger/drought at 25 per cent and unemployment at 13 per cent.
