Kapseret Member of Parliament Oscar Sudi has announced that he will be taking a break from public fundraising events, commonly known as harambees. In a statement posted on X on Sunday evening, Sudi revealed that he would be “going on leave for one year or two” and would abstain from public political engagements until he felt guided by a higher calling.
“Going forward, I’ll not participate in any harambee because it has been used to malign and disparage the good cause, let it be banned. The current happenings in the country call for introspection and consequently, I’m taking a sabbatical leave from public engagements,” he stated.
Sudi’s announcement came shortly after President William Ruto addressed the nation in a roundtable discussion with Kenyan media. During the interview, Ruto admitted that the ‘harambee culture’ among politicians had become problematic and needed to be curtailed.
“On matters of politics on the pulpit I am one hundred per cent aligned. We shouldn’t be using pulpits in churches to prosecute politics,” Ruto said during the Sunday evening interview at State House. “We need to change the culture of harambee. It started as a noble exercise, supporting many people to go to school, but I think it has stretched too far. We must stop harambees because it is breeding corruption.”
This decision follows public concern over the large sums of money politicians contribute to fundraising events, often raising questions about the sources of these funds and potential links to corruption.
Sudi also addressed allegations that he had donated Ksh.20 million at a previous church fundraiser, clarifying in a video shared on Sunday that the total amount collected at the event was Ksh.20 million, not his personal contribution.
