Ruto Responds To Uhuru On Linda Mama As Duale Slams Ex-President Over Ksh5.6B Debt
Ruto struck a conciliatory note as he reflected on the Linda Mama programme introduced under Uhuru’s leadership.
Marvin Chege 
President William Ruto has addressed mounting criticism of his government’s handling of the health sector, following former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s recent comments that stirred a nationwide debate.
At the launch of Umma University in Kajiado County on Tuesday, September 30, Ruto struck a conciliatory note as he reflected on the Linda Mama programme introduced under Uhuru’s leadership.
He noted that his administration drew heavily from Linda Mama to enhance its successor, Linda Jamii, which now provides prenatal, natal, and postnatal care for expectant mothers.
"Maybe let me use this occasion to defend my former boss, the former President. To defend him, we should be a bit more magnanimous toward him. The Linda Mama programme was a great programme that we developed under the leadership of President Uhuru, and we learnt a lot from the Linda Mama programme," Ruto stated.
"Because of the experiences from the Linda Mama Programme, we designed the Linda Jamii programme, which was an improvement over its predecessor. We did not stop at it, we now even have the Universal Health Coverage."
President Ruto characterized Linda Jamii as an advancement of the earlier programme, built on past experiences to deliver more inclusive healthcare coverage. He explained that insights gained from Linda Mama informed the design of Linda Jamii, making it a more refined and improved version.
The President highlighted the distinction between the two, noting that while Linda Mama mainly centered on childbirth, Linda Jamii extends support to a wider range of maternal health services.
"Linda Mama was good. Linda Jamii is obviously better. And therefore, it is an improvement from what it was in terms of the scope from just the delivery of mothers, which was the primary target of Linda Mama," President Ruto said.
The upgraded programme now includes prenatal care, childbirth, and postnatal services, representing a major improvement over the initial version.
The President’s comments follow concerns raised by former President Uhuru about the discontinuation of initiatives launched during his leadership.
Speaking at the Jubilee Party National Delegates Conference on Friday, September 26, Uhuru voiced his disappointment over what he termed as the rollback of achievements from his administration, citing the Linda Mama programme in particular.
"Today, many of the gains we had in the past have been eroded, Linda Mama and others have been replaced by new, untried and untested schemes. And while we wait for these experiments to work, Kenyans suffer and our progress is retarded," he said.
In response, Health Cabinet Secretary (CS) Aden Duale disclosed that the Linda Mama programme inherited from the previous government had accumulated a massive Ksh 5.6 billion debt. Addressing a gathering in Kajiado County on Tuesday, September 30, CS Duale outlined the financial and operational hurdles the Kenya Kwanza administration encountered when it assumed power.
"When we came into office, we were confronted with a fictitious NHIF debt amounting to Ksh 30 billion. Shockingly, Ksh 5.6 billion of this was linked to the Linda Mama programme," Duale disclosed, adding "This was not just a matter of numbers. It reflected years of weak oversight, inefficiency, and mismanagement that compromised the quality of care delivered to mothers and their children."
The Health CS also faulted the low reimbursement rates under the former Linda Mama programme, saying they undermined the quality of maternal healthcare.
He noted that through the now-defunct NHIF, Linda Mama reimbursed as little as Ksh 2,500, with minimal consideration for service quality. According to Duale, this contributed to a troubling increase in maternal deaths as many expectant mothers were unable to access adequate care.
Health Cabinet Secretary (CS) Aden Duale speaking during the groundbreaking for the construction of the Umma University School of Engineering Phase III on September 30, 2025. /ADEN DUALE
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