Main Achievements & Failures Of Ruto Govt So Far- TIFA Poll

The harsh economic times and the launch of the Hustler Fund initiative were revealed to be President William Ruto's main failures and achievements in the latest poll released by Tifa Research.

The report released on Thursday, July 13 sought to determine Kenya's current direction as well as the performance of President Ruto's Kenya Kwanza government since taking office on September 13, 2022.

According to Tifa, 52 per cent of Kenyans cited increased economic hardship as the biggest failure in Ruto's government as of June 2023, an increase of 37 per cent as of March 2023.

"There has been an increase in the mentions of hard economic hardships between March and June 2023," stated the report in part.

This was followed by failed campaign promises, though in comparison to 14 per cent in March 2023, there was a drop to 7 per cent in terms of Kenyans who cited the failed campaign promises among Ruto's biggest failures.

In terms of achievements, the Hustler Fund and bottom-up economy were ranked highest at 10 per cent in June 2023, though a drop from 29 per cent in March 2023.

"Among all Kenyans, the launch of the Hustler Fund receives the most mentions (10%), but no other achievement rating reaches double digits," Tifa noted.

However, more Kenyans believed that the Kenya Kwanza government has achieved nothing between the months of March and June 2023, with 51 per cent recorded in June compared to 38 per cent in March.

"Kenyans belief that the achievements by the Kenya Kwanza Government has reduced between March and June, with over half of Kenyans saying the GoK has achieved nothing," added Tifa.

In terms of its perceived failures, there was a widespread agreement that continuing if not increasing economic hardship is at the top of most Kenyans’ minds across the political divide, though the failure to fulfil “campaign promises” as well as various economic issues aside from such promises also received considerable mentions.

Generally, President Ruto scored a C+ in the latest poll, with only 30.8 per cent of Kenyans surveyed in the research believing that Ruto has achieved the promises he made in the 2022 pre-election campaigns.

43.6 believed that the President has fulfilled his campaign pledges while only 18.4 per cent of the opposition supporters believe he is delivering on his promises.

On the direction the country was heading, a significant number of Kenyans (56%) believe that the country is heading in the wrong direction, with only 25 per cent saying otherwise.

"Among the minority who consider the country’s current direction as positive (25%), there is little agreement on their reasons, with a small plurality (24%) citing the leadership of the Ruto government as the main reason for their positivity.

"Those Kenyans who consider the country’s current direction as wrong (56%) are nearly unanimous as to why they feel thus: the escalating cost of living," added the report.

Tifa also found that irrespective of their political affiliations, the vast majority of Kenyans who perceive the country's current direction as incorrect are in unanimous agreement about their reasoning: the ever-increasing cost of living.

Tifa's Best Performing CSs

The survey further ranked Interior CS Kithure Kindiki as the best-performing CS followed by Ezekiel Machogu (Education) in second and Susan Nakhumicha (Health) in third.

Following the top three were Sports CS Ababu Namwamba, his transport counterpart Kipchumba Murkomen and Trade CS Moses Kuria respectively.

Interior CS, Kithure Kindiki appears before the Senate Ad Hoc Committee to investigate the proliferation of religious organisations and the circumstances leading to the deaths in Shakahola, Kilifi County on July 11, 2023. /KITHURE KINDIKI