President William Ruto opens 13th parliament

President William Ruto has today afternoon, September 29, addressed the first joint sitting of the bicameral house as 13th Parliament opens.

Speaker of the National Assembly Moses Wetangula and his Senate counterpart Amason Kingi stated that the address by the head of state complies with Article 132 (1) (a) of the Constitution requiring the Head of State to address the opening of each newly elected Parliament.

While addressing the 13th Parliament which was sworn in on September 8 following the aftermath of the August 9 General Election, the President outlined the policies which his administration will be seeking to realize and key priorities anchored on his bottom-up economic model.

“I will be proposing a national savings drive to encourage those in the informal sector to set up their retirement savings plan. For every three shillings saved in the scheme, up to a maximum of Ksh6,000 a year, the government will contribute one shilling,” President Ruto adding, “There is no retired Kenyan today who is living on their NSSF retirement benefits. The meager current contribution of Ksh200 a month adds up to Ksh72,000 over 30 years. There is no rate of return on earth that can grow this into an adequate pension.”

The President addressed a myriad of issues in his maiden speech including fast tracking of corruption cases and the current state of economy.

“The Government should never borrow to finance recurrent expenditure. This is not prudent or sustainable. We must bring ourselves back to sanity.”

“I have instructed Treasury to work with ministries to find savings of Ksh300 billion in this year’s budget. Next year, we will bring it further down so that, by the third year, we have a recurrent budget surplus,“ Dr.Ruto.

President William Ruto who already asked financial institutions to come up with a credit model that will allow small businesses to access affordable loans said it is possible for Mama Mboga and Boda Boda to enjoy low interest loans the same way big firms do.

“We must think beyond financial inclusion to a more accessible and affordable credit model. That way, small businesses will grow and drive our economy,” he said noting that the Government is not against Credit Reference Bureau listing but its abuse and criminalisation.

“We are for a mechanism that instill financial discipline. The current CRB as it is is inhibitive; an in-out, all or nothing outfit,” added President Ruto.

The President explained that the Government will underwrite the risks that will come with the new move.

The Head of State asked parliament to consider a mechanism in the Standing Orders to facilitate Cabinet Secretaries articulate government agenda, policy and answer questions on the floor of the House to enhance executive accountability to the people through their elected representatives.