Former Public Service Cabinet Secretary Justin Muturi has made explosive allegations against President William Ruto, accusing him of secretly engaging in corrupt deals while publicly portraying himself as a fighter against corruption.
In a revealing interview on NTV’s Fixing the Nation, Muturi claimed that the president has two contrasting personas—one for the public and another behind closed doors. “He is quite a dangerous character. I think Ruto is unfit for the position of president. I’ve no bitterness; this is my assessment. When I watched him talk to members of my Cabinet, saying I don’t want to see corruption, I wondered who is this talking?” he said.
Muturi went further, labeling Ruto as “absolutely, very, irredeemably corrupt.” He alleged that the president pressured him to approve a Ksh.129 billion deal with Russian oligarchs for a tree-planting project, a move he resisted due to legal concerns.
“I was invited to go to COP 28 in Dubai, which ended up in the Adani Deal about the airport. During that time, some Russian oligarchs wanted to invest Ksh.129 billion in Kenya,” Muturi revealed. “I landed in Dubai and received a phone call from Ruto, who told me that the Russians were waiting at the airport and I needed to sign the documents. I declined, saying I needed to review the documents in the office.”
Muturi explained that the deal was structured to bypass the Treasury, which he found suspicious. “Whenever Ruto comes up with a project, it’s for moneymaking. So they bring me a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), and I tell them that the Ksh.129 billion can only be by a grant but can’t come directly to the ministry. It only goes through the Treasury.”
He also spoke about the controversial Arror and Kimwarer dams scandal, where the government secured a Ksh.63 billion loan from an Italian company, CMC di Ravenna. Muturi alleged that the project was riddled with discrepancies in cost and accountability.
“I refused to sign the Arror/Kimwarer dams. The Italians were paid billions. In Kimwarer, nothing has happened because the report provided was faulty,” he stated.
Muturi further disclosed that Ruto personally engaged with Italian leaders regarding the dams, adding, “Ruto held meetings with the Italian Prime Minister and the President. On three occasions, I was invited by the Head of Public Service to accompany the team. I wondered why because the country was losing Ksh.38 billion on the project. They wanted me to sign, and I declined.”
Despite his public fallout with Ruto, Muturi denied harboring any personal grudge against the president, insisting that his claims are backed by evidence. “I have all the supporting documents on softcopy,” he declared.
His accusations come just weeks after President Ruto dismissed him from the Cabinet, replacing him with Mbeere North MP Geoffrey Ruku.
