Reuters/Thomas MukoyaNAIROBI — Kenya’s embattled President William Ruto sacked nearly every member of his cabinet on Thursday following weeks of youth-led protests across the country. The exception was Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi who retained his job — making him the most senior government official after the presidency and parliament’s speaker. Mudavadi will also continue to double up as the country’s foreign affairs cabinet secretary. Ruto attributed the mass dismissals to the protests and resulting withdrawal of his government’s controversial finance bill, which he said had brought the country to “an inflection point.” The firing of the cabinet has been one of the protesters’ key demands. Ruto said he had taken time to reflect and review the performance of his ministers. Many of the cabinet secretaries are close political allies of Ruto who aided his successful 2022 presidential bid. But allegations of government corruption have turned public sentiment against several cabinet members. “Even with the progress we have made, I am acutely aware that the people of Kenya have very high expectations of me and they believe that this administration can undertake the most extensive transformations in our nation’s history,” Ruto said at State House, Nairobi, while dismissing his cabinet “with immediate effect.” Ruto had previously made concessions to the protesters, including scrapping the first lady’s official budget, announcing the planned dissolution of 47 state agencies, and suspending purchases of new government vehicles and non-essential travel for government employees. |