Kebaso had beforehand revealed that the Head of State’s handlers had approached him in light of intense fact-finding of various government projects in the country
State House Spokesperson Hussein Mohamed on Wednesday, August 28 dismissed remarks by 28-year-old businessman and lawyer Morara Kebaso on live TV, just moments after the latter claimed that President William Ruto approached him with a job offer via a phone call.
Kebaso had beforehand revealed that the Head of State’s handlers had approached him in light of intense fact-finding of various government projects in the country, a matter which forced Mohamed to immediately respond.
In a live phone interview on Citizen TV, Mohamed accused Kebaso of lying to viewers and went to the extent of calling out renowned media personality, Jeff Koinange, for allowing Kebaso to make utterances without being fact-checked.
Here is the video:
Hussein Mohamed, State House Spokesperson: I am shocked at what Morara Kebaso is saying. I wonder why he would lie on national TV that the President called him#ViralVideos pic.twitter.com/r7smGisPAK
— Viral Tea Ke (@ViralTeaKe) August 28, 2024
“It’s just unbelievable. I mean, I wasn’t following but I was told about this, I’m just shocked at what the gentleman Morara is saying. I wonder why he would lie on national TV that the President called him. It’s ridiculous that I have to respond to this but let me do it because you, Jeff, you’re my friend, we’ve worked together but you let it happen on national TV as well,” he stated.
Mohamed set the record straight, saying “For the record, such a call never happened, it’s a statement of his imagination,” before going hard on Koinange, in what he termed as a lapse in journalistic standards.
“What is more shocking, Jeff, is that you can allow anyone to come on TV and tell you such a thing without demanding any proof or substantiation and you just buy it, hook, line and sinker.
“All you should have done at the very least is say that those are his words and it’s an alleged claim from him, not just to accept and say okay the President called him. Anybody can say that and many people say that,” Mohamed reprimanded.
The former Citizen TV anchor however did commend Morara’s efforts alongside those of many Kenyans, terming them part of accountability which he affirmed that President Ruto welcomes, as part of democracy.
However, he cautioned that “even as he talks about democracy and holds the government accountable, it is important that we do it truthfully.”
Mohamed defended the stalled projects as was the case in a previous response to Morara, stating that the Kenya Kwanza manifesto had captured President Ruto’s promise to complete stalled projects, including roads.
“All these examples that are being floated of these projects…and most of them you’ll see whose construction was supposed to begin or began way before President Ruto assumed office. The mess was back then so the question is why did all this mess happen back then?” he posed.
On August 19, in response to Kebaso’s remarks regarding the launch of the Metembe-Marani-Kegogi-Nyaore Road by President Ruto during his visit to Kisii County, set the record straight, providing a detailed explanation of the road’s history and circumstances that culminated in its relaunch.
According to the spokesperson, the road crisscrosses Kitutu Chache North and South constituencies in Kisii County and is 64.6 km. The project was initially awarded on May 11, 2016, and works commenced on August 5, 2016, after its launch by former President Uhuru Kenyatta.
He noted that the contract was however mutually terminated on May 16, 2023, due to the contractor’s non-performance. At the time of termination, the contractor had completed 27km, with 77 months having lapsed out of the 30-month contract period.
Mohamed then recalled that the project was re-tendered and awarded on March 14, 2024, with works commencing on June 22, 2024, adding that President Ruto officially relaunched the newly awarded road contract, fulfilling his pledge to complete all stalled road projects.
The contract period for the works, he went on, was revealed to be 42 months and a further maintenance period of 36 months.