Eva Nyambura
President Uhuru Kenyatta has finally broken his silence on his deputy almost smacking him back in 2017.
Addressing religious leaders on Friday at State House, the outgoing head of state acknowledged that he was considering giving up on the presidency after the Supreme Court annulled his win.
According to the president, he could not watch as the country plunged into chaos over power.
“If they had slapped me over power, I would have given them the other cheek to slap. Yes, I wanted to go back to Ichaweri because I couldn’t compare power with bloodshed,” he said.
Read: Nobody Could Have Taken Humiliation by Uhuru – DP Ruto
Speaking in his mother tongue, the president said he was willing to put the interests of the people before his own.
“These seats we occupy (Presidency) are not more valuable than human life. I had said yes, I will not see more people lose lives because of a seat,” he added.
In an audio clip leaked last week, deputy president William Ruto was heard saying that he almost slapped his boss who was contemplating giving up his office.
But according to the DP who is gunning for his boss’s position, he could not stand by and watch his friend give up on his dream.
Read Also: I Could Not Allow Uhuru Abandon Us – DP Ruto Explains Leaked Audio
“Uhuru started showing signs of giving up. He told me he wants to go to Ichaweri. He told me that we quit the fight for the presidency. I looked at him and told him, you, it is because of respect but I would have slapped him,” Ruto said.
“Even if I forced Uhuru Kenyatta to be President, is there a problem? Azimio supporters should stop this nonsense. They are spreading a recording saying that Ruto forced Uhuru to be president. If you were me, would you have accepted Uhuru to abandon us with the way we had pushed him?” he posed.
In an interview with KTN News on Thursday, Dr Ruto clarified that the slap was just but a figure of speech.
The UDA flagbearer said no one can slap the president and his remarks were simply taken out of context.
Read Also: Kenya Kwanza Claims Uhuru Secretly Auctioned Kenyan Ports to Dubai-based Company
“Honestly, that is figurative speech. Nobody can slap the president. That was a figure of speech,” the DP explained.
“The point I was trying to make to this audience is that the president was almost giving up. I told him you are not going to do something silly like that.”
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