Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale has declared President William Ruto the outright favorite to win the 2027 General Election, insisting the opposition lacks the political muscle and leadership depth to mount a serious challenge.
Speaking on Wednesday night during Citizen TV’s JKLive Show hosted by Jeff Koinange, Duale said President Ruto is poised for a decisive victory, projecting a margin of between two and three million votes.
“William Ruto will win in 2027 by two million to three million votes. The rest are jokers; the serious competitor is not around,” Duale stated.
The Health CS argued that the opposition’s strength diminished significantly following the decline of former Prime Minister Raila Odinga’s political influence, describing Raila’s once-formidable support base as a collapsed pillar.
“Raila Odinga’s political constituency and stature were like a pillar; it has crashed, and to rebuild it will take time,” he said.
Duale dismissed current opposition leaders as lacking the ability to mobilize mass support, boldly challenging them to demonstrate their influence.
“No leader has a solid, radicalized, strong constituency. These other oppositions cannot even fill Uhuru Park. Tell them to fill it, and I will pay. It is only William Ruto who can fill Uhuru Park.”
Health Reforms and SHA Scrutiny
Beyond politics, Duale strongly defended the government’s health sector reforms, saying they are already delivering results despite sustained criticism.
He revealed that a single patient in Kwale County is under investigation over 381 SHA-dependent children, raising concerns over possible abuse of the Social Health Authority system.
The CS said Kenya’s health reforms have attracted international attention, with other African nations seeking to learn from the country’s progress.
“Ministers from Ghana and Zambia are coming to learn. WHO is telling other African leaders to come to Kenya and learn from our success story,” Duale said.
He dismissed critics of the reforms as habitual opponents of President Ruto.
“Those opposing are the normal characters who want to oppose William Ruto because he is called William Ruto. The name Ruto disturbs them.”
Duale maintained that both patients and health workers are benefiting from the reforms, noting that 29 million Kenyans have voluntarily registered under the new health system.
“I can tell you without blinking that Kenyans and health workers are very happy with the reform agenda. For many years, patients suffered without proper care. Today, 29 million Kenyans have registered freely; nobody has coerced them.”
He also announced the rollout of a ‘Scope of Practice’ policy, aimed at ensuring medical professionals strictly operate within their areas of specialization.
“If you are trained for oncology, you will do oncology,” he said.
On disputed health insurance claims, Duale drew a firm line, saying the government will not pay Sh11 billion in rejected claims it considers fraudulent.
“Respectfully, you cannot call a minister a liar. Call me a liar, call me a bulldozer—but we will not pay the rejected Sh11 billion. We are going to publish all the people who wanted to get that money fraudulently.”
The remarks underline the government’s confidence ahead of 2027 as well as its determination to push through contentious health sector reforms.
