Ruto was on his second day of a tour of the larger Nyanza region, the political backyard of Raila Odinga – his fiercest opponent for the 2022 presidential contest.
Upon reaching his final stop in Kisumu, at a place called Kondele, all hell broke loose. The deputy president, who stood through the sunroof of his official car, had a hard time addressing the rowdy crowd.
“Thank you for welcoming us, thank you,” Ruto said amidst chaos. “[…] please…let’s stop throwing stones, […] There is no need to fight each other.”
He was a man under siege, but his political image would not let him retreat. A contingent of anti-riot police officers responded, chasing after stone-hurling youth. They were forced to lob teargas canisters to disperse the crowd.
The blame game
Ruto stood firm, he was there to make a statement: “I want to [tell] those that have paid the youth to throw stones, shame on them!” he
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