Oscar Sudi jokes about being left out of President William Ruto's Cabinet

Kapseret MP Oscar Sudi has addressed reports of being left out of President William Ruto’s Cabinet, despite being one of his closest allies.

Sudi joked that sometimes the people who help campaign for an incoming president are not the same individuals called upon to form the government.

He was speaking during the funeral of the late Henry Kiplimo Rotich, who was a brother to Elgeyo Marakwet Governor Wisley Rotich.

President William Ruto making an address at State House flanked by DP Rigathi Gachagua and Musalia Mudavadi on September 27, 2022 Pulse Live Kenya

“On the day he (Ruto) was announcing the Cabinet nominees, I was at State House but I was not dressed in a tie. The president asked me why I did not have a tie and I rushed to look for an expensive one before he made the announcement.

“I made sure I stood at a place he could see me. When he announced Roads CS nominee Onesmus Kipchumba, I didn’t hear the name Onesmus. I asked Ichung’wa (Kikuyu MP) which Kipchumba the president had mentioned and he told me it was Murkomen,” Sudi told the mourners who laughed at the story.

He congratulated Senator Murkomen for the trust bestowed upon him by President Ruto in nominating him to the Ministry of Roads, Transport, and Public Works.

READ: How Oscar Sudi lost Sh11 million life savings and earned it back in 6 months

Sudi acknowldged that the ministry was among the most funded, having incorporated three state departments.

“I have also learned that those who campaign for a government are different from those appointed to run it. Only a few campaigners made it such as Kipchumba Murkomen, Moses Kuria and the rest.

“The rest of us can only look on and say yes sir! God is great that William Ruto is the 5th President of Kenya,” Sudi said.

Nandi Governor Stephen Sang, Senator Kipchumba Murkomen and MP Oscar Sudi during the funeral of the late Henry Kiplimo Rotich on October 1, 2022. Pulse Live Kenya

He continued joking that the president should also form a small docket for him, even if it was “Kuunganisha mawaya”.

This was in reference to remarks President Ruto had made on the campaign trail, chiding Sudi over his academic qualifications.

"Mtu wa kuunganisha mawaya (Sudi), we will also need you. You know this man started as a conductor, God is good. However, I heard that he does not have academic papers," Ruto said during a church service at Kapseret PCEA in May 2022.

The Kapseret MP has had the president’s ear for many years and is regarded as one of his closest confidants and business associates.