Justin Muturi Was Incompetent: Ruto

Ruto's latest remarks offer arguably the most vivid indication of his true feelings towards Muturi

Justin Muturi Was Incompetent: Ruto
Collage of President William Ruto and CS Justin Muturi. /PCS.JUSTIN MUTURI

President William Ruto has offered perhaps the strongest indication of a rift between him and Public Service Cabinet Secretary Justin Muturi, taking a dig at his tenure as the Attorney General.

Speaking during an Iftar dinner at State House on Tuesday, March 25, the Head of State called Muturi 'fairly incompetent' over his tenure as the Attorney General, despite him later appointing him to his broad-based Cabinet.

According to Ruto, Muturi's incompetence was linked to the oversight of legal processes related to the creation of a Waqf Commission, which would be responsible for managing Islamic endowments.

The Head of State reassured the Muslim community that these long-standing concerns would be addressed within months under the leadership of the current Attorney General, Dorcas Oduor.

“I had a problem with the AG who was there before—he was fairly incompetent. But now, I have a very competent lady in the position, and I can assure you that the issues of Wakf will be sorted out within months,” Ruto stated.

He was addressing concerns raised by Muslim leaders regarding delays in implementing an endowment fund, despite the existence of an established Act that has yet to be put into effect.

Ruto's latest remarks offer arguably the most vivid indication of his true feelings towards Muturi, who has been verbally having the President in a chokehold following his accusations that Ruto's government was involved in abductions and extrajudicial killings.

On January 12, Muturi stirred controversy by naming senior government officials allegedly linked to the abduction of his son, Leslie, during the June Gen-Z protests. Since then, he has consistently demanded action on the issue, frequently causing tensions within the government he serves.

National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah, in a recent interview with Al Jazeera, claimed that Muturi was on the verge of being sacked, claiming he knows 'he is on his way out'. However, the President has been reluctant to relieve him of his current duties amidst rumours of a Cabinet reshuffle to accommodate allies of former Prime Minister, Raila Odinga.

Muturi served as Attorney General from October 2022 until July 2024, when President Ruto dissolved his cabinet, leading to Muturi's departure from the Attorney General position. He later clarified that he resigned voluntarily to allow the President to reorganize the government.

“It is true that I resigned and there were reasons because as you would expect, the National Executive level and the country were alive that was some disquiet and the honorable thing to do at that particular time was take a route that is provided for in law to allow the President an opportunity to reorganize his Cabinet as he desired," he said.

Following his resignation, Muturi was appointed as the Cabinet Secretary for Public Service and Human Capital Development in August 2024. Dorcas Oduor was appointed as Kenya's first female Attorney General, succeeding Muturi. 

Public Service CS Justin Muturi on Citizen TV’s JKLive show on January 12, 2025. /JASE MWANGI.CITIZEN TV