President William Ruto's State of the Nation Address should not be judged by the promises it made but by the scrutiny that follows, Migori Senator Eddy Oketch has said, urging Kenyans to hold the Head of State accountable for every commitment outlined in his speech.
Speaking during an interview with Radio Generation on Friday, Oketch said the President's annual address should mark the beginning of public accountability, arguing that citizens, the media, civil society and Parliament all have a role in examining the government's record and testing the promises made.
"It's a very tough question because, as I said, the question of accountability is perhaps a question of Q and A," he said.
Oketch who is also the Deputy Minority Whip at the Senate said while every leader naturally highlights achievements during a State of the Nation Address, it is only after the speech that the public gets an opportunity to assess whether those claims stand up to scrutiny.
"What we are doing now is what you call accountability in the sense that media houses and the citizens will then listen and be able to question a number of things that were said, right or wrong. That becomes the accountability lab," he said.
He said leaders rarely hold themselves accountable, making oversight by independent institutions and the public essential in a democracy.
"Any leader would try and show the good side of what they've done. But I think that the most important thing is that after the speech, then this is the chance for the citizen to engage in terms of holding him to account," he said.
Oketch said institutions such as the media, civil society organisations and Parliament exist to ensure those in power remain answerable to the public.
"That's why you've got the fourth estate. That's why you have got different civil societies that work in most of our countries. That's why you have got politicians in Parliament to be able to hold the country to account," he said.
The senator also dismissed suggestions that there was a "mole" at State House after Democracy for the Citizens Party (DCP) leader Rigathi Gachagua revealed earlier in the day that President Ruto would use the address to unveil a successor to Vision 2030.
"The president's address is not supposed to be something that is secretive," Oketch said. "It's not supposed to be something that you are launching something like a business where you're expecting some serious secrets."
His remarks came after President Ruto launched the process of replacing Vision 2030 on Thursday, July 30, 2026 , saying Kenya needed a new long-term development blueprint to guide the country's economic transformation over the next three decades.
In his State of the Nation Address, the President announced that he would spearhead a nationwide public conversation beginning on August 12 to develop a successor to Vision 2030, describing it as the most consequential public engagement since the promulgation of the 2010 Constitution.
Ruto said the new roadmap would be a national development charter designed to outlive political administrations and election cycles.
"We must craft a new national development charter that gives effect to the aspirations of our constitution and decide together what kind of Kenya we want to build over the next generation," Ruto said.
The President said the process would provide an opportunity for Kenyans to assess what Vision 2030, the country's development blueprint launched in 2008, had achieved, where it had fallen short and what should shape the country's next chapter.
Oketch maintained there was nothing unusual about political leaders anticipating the President's agenda, arguing that a State of the Nation Address is often a reflection of positions the Head of State has consistently expressed in public.
"The president's address is an accumulation of everything he has been saying and the posture he has been having," he said.
"I believe that if you've got a good president, you should be able to actually predict the thought of the president because he is a gentleman that has been around us all the time. We see him in churches, we see him in different gatherings, and therefore the thought processes are formed."
He also played down speculation that the President could have used the address to announce a Cabinet reshuffle or changes involving senior government officials, including Deputy President Kithure Kindiki.
Oketch said public debate and political speculation are part of a healthy democracy but stressed that leaders occupying public office have a responsibility to avoid making claims they cannot verify.
"There's a lot of democratized space for people to engage and talk about issues, and because of that, you allow every mind," he said.
However, he said elected leaders should be guided by facts.
"I am an employee of the people of Migori. I've been voted in. Therefore, my employer is a particular section of people that I must respect to the extent that I cannot just be talking about non-factual things that I cannot substantiate," he said.