I Have Eaten GMOs, Have I Grown Breasts?- Ruto

President William Ruto has rubbished claims that Genetically modified crops (GMOs) have harmful capabilities to Kenyans who consume them.

Speaking during a joint media interview with journalists from Kenyan mainstream media houses at State House in Nairobi on Wednesday, January 4, Ruto named the likes of South Africa, the United States (US) and other countries that have consumed it and have not cited nationwide problems on their end.

He affirmed that he cannot put the lives of Kenyans at risk, in defence of his decision to lift the 10-year-old ban on GMOs in a bid to provide food surplus to the country owing to the high cost of living.

Ruto went on to give his own hilarious take on how he consumed GMO foods and turned out a normal human being, contrary to claims peddled by some politicians that the foods would alter body features.

"I want to explain to Kenyans that the food we have been vouching for all these years, already has GMO. As a leader of the country, I cannot endanger the lives of Kenyans who voted for me, I'm a scientist.

"Every scientist in Kenya agrees that GMOs are safe. Have you heard of anyone who has grown horns in South Africa because they have eaten GMOs? I have eaten GMOs, have I grown breasts?" he said.

He was responding to Roots party leader Prof. George Wajackoyah's opposition to the government's plan to import GMO foods as a means of tackling hunger witnessed in the country, giving an account of how Mexico banned GMOs due to strange negative effects.

Mexico in October this year announced that it was considering direct agreements with farmers in the United States, Argentina and Brazil to secure non-genetically modified yellow corn imports, with the country's deputy agriculture minister saying that a 2024 ban on GM corn would not be amended.

"Mexico banned GMOs because they did their research and found that almost 500 men grew breasts from eating GMOs and women grew beards. 

"We have rejected GMO foods. However, if you eat them, the women will grow beards and the men will grow breasts," he warned while speaking during the Emuhaya youth talent on Monday, December 26.

At the same time, he mocked the opposition over his promise to lower the cost of food in the country by stating that the cost of maize flour would have been higher had the opposition clinched victory in the August 9 elections, noting that the situation was better than it was in the previous regime.

"Today, from an average of Ksh230, the cost of unga is about Ksh190 per 2kg. If the outcome of the elections went the other way, perhaps the cost of unga right now would be Ksh300," he stated.

He explained that the Kenya Kwanza government had embarked on a mission to rid the country of cartels and brokers from its supply system which have been causing torment to the country's economy.

He further revisited his efforts to subsidize farm inputs, including fertilizer as one of his dedicated measures to achieve food security and prevent an increase in food prices in the future. 

On the matter of subsidies, the Head of State noted that his move to scrap them from former President Uhuru Kenyatta's administration was influenced by the subsidies being turned into political tools meant to influence voters ahead of the August 9 polls.

Before the voting day, Uhuru in July 2022 slashed the cost of unga to Ksh100 from the high price of Ksh205 until otherwise stated, ahead of what many anticipated was an economy set to take a hit with the electioneering period through the closure of businesses.