Deputy President Kithure Kindiki has put opposition parties on notice ahead of the 2027 elections, saying they must develop stronger national structures and present practical plans to Kenyans if they hope to dislodge UDA from power.
Kindiki said the ruling party has built a wide network from the national level to polling stations since the 2022 General Election, giving it an advantage over rival political formations.
The Deputy President spoke on Friday while hosting thousands of UDA grassroots officials from Tharaka Nithi County at his home in Irunduni, where he also urged the party's representatives to take the government's message to voters.
“UDA is the only party in Kenya with a strong presence at the polling-station level, with officials at polling centres who have been elected democratically. It is only the UDA party; no other party has that kind of presence nationally,” DP stated.
Kindiki, who serves as UDA Deputy Party Leader, said the party had continued to attract new supporters because of the development programme it presented during the 2022 campaigns.
He said the Bottom Up Economic Transformation Agenda had guided the government's work over the past four years, with a number of commitments already met and others still being implemented.
Deputy President Kithure Kindiki holds an engagement meeting with UDA polling centre officials in Irunduni, Tharaka Nithi County, on August 21, 2026. PHOTO/DPCS
“We had an agenda. We had a vision. We have fulfilled many promises, others are ongoing, others are completed, and others are on the way,” DP indicated.
According to Kindiki, UDA's victory in 2022 was based on a plan to improve the country rather than political excitement or slogans.
He said the party had persuaded Kenyans that it had a clear path for moving the country forward and improving the lives of ordinary citizens.
“We were not elected by making noise or creating unnecessary excitement among citizens with useless things. We were elected because we agreed that there is a way we want to make the Republic of Kenya a better, developed nation and take it forward from where we found it,” he emphasized.
The Deputy President used the government's record in education to defend the administration's performance, citing the recruitment of teachers, improvements in schools and the expansion of Technical and Vocational Education and Training institutions.
He said the government had also taken steps to improve university education and expand opportunities for students who had previously had limited access to technical training.
Kindiki said the administration was about to exceed its pledge to employ 116,000 teachers within its first five years.
“Our manifesto stated that we would employ 116,000 teachers in the first five years. Already, this government has employed 100,000 teachers, and this month we are adding another 20,000 new teachers, bringing the total to 120,000 teachers. By next month, we will have surpassed our target,” he stated.
The Deputy President also pointed to changes in the health sector, saying the government's Universal Health Coverage programme had expanded access to medical insurance.
He said 32 million Kenyans had been registered under Taifa Care, while the government had recruited 7,000 doctors, taking the number of medics to twice the level recorded before 2022.
Kindiki also cited improved pay for health workers as part of the government's efforts in the sector.
“NHIF had only 8 million registered Kenyans, but the one we have under SHA has risen to 32.3 million Kenyans, and we will not stop until every Kenyan citizen is registered and with access to health insurance policy,” he noted.
In agriculture, Kindiki said government support had focused on reducing the cost of farm inputs to help farmers increase production.
He cited the fertiliser subsidy as one of the measures introduced after UDA came to power, saying the price was reduced to KSh 2,500 during the first year of the administration.
“The manifesto stated that we should reduce the price of fertiliser, and during the first year we reduced the price to KSh 2,500 so that our farmers could get access to fertiliser easily and increase food production for our country to have enough food,” DP said.
The Deputy President further said infrastructure development had picked up, with thousands of kilometres of roads under construction across the country.
He said some of the roads had stalled during previous administrations but were now being worked on through a new government funding approach.
Kindiki said the National Infrastructure Fund would provide further resources for road construction and other major projects as the government seeks to speed up development.
He then turned his attention to the opposition, saying political parties seeking to take power should offer Kenyans policies that can compete with the government's development programme.
He criticised rivals for focusing on slogans, nicknames and other political messaging instead of presenting workable alternatives.
“They must provide a better agenda because coming up with nicknames and issuing terms of service would not help them in any way. We are focused because we have the agenda to improve the lives of the people,” he said.
Kindiki also tasked UDA officials at polling centres with promoting the government's agenda and maintaining a strong connection with voters at the grassroots.
He described them as key representatives of the party and urged them to explain the government's work to citizens as the country moves towards the next election.
“I want to send you, as our army at the grassroots level, to go and sell the government’s agenda to the citizens… You are very important. You are the spokespersons of the party at the polling centres where you have been elected,” he urged.