Kenya's Deputy President Kithure Kindiki used a project inspection tour in Gatundu North Constituency, Kiambu County, on Wednesday to press former officeholders to account for what they delivered to the area, according to The Star, Kenya. Speaking during the visit, he said voters should ask anyone soliciting their support to explain their past contribution to the constituency's development.
The Deputy President also defended the government's record, saying it is speeding up projects already under way and starting new ones, The Star, Kenya reports.
Why it matters
The remarks place accountability for past leadership at the centre of the government's pitch in a constituency it says was long neglected in roads and other infrastructure. Kindiki framed the tour as evidence that the administration is correcting what he called historical development inequalities, a message he tied to the wider national political contest ahead of the 2027 election.
According to The Star, Kenya, he argued that leaders who previously held public office owe residents an explanation of their achievements, and that voters should demand it before casting ballots.
Roads and markets in focus
Kindiki said the government had ended discrimination between different parts of the country, insisting that every region must be developed. He said projects being carried out in Kiambu are mirrored in other areas, naming Meru and the Coast as examples, and described this as the route to a country where no citizen feels excluded.
The centrepiece of the visit was the 67-kilometre Thika–Magumu Road, one of the Mau Mau roads running through the constituency. According to The Star, Kenya, Kindiki said the project had been revived and was moving toward completion after an allocation of Sh3.4 billion. He acknowledged that Gatundu North had fallen behind on roads and other development, and said the government was working to close that gap.
The constituency is also covered by the affordable housing and modern markets programmes, per The Star, Kenya. The Kanyoni Economic Stimulus Programme market, valued at Sh65 million, is 75 per cent complete, while work continues at Gatukuyu Market, valued at Sh56 million. Construction is also under way at the Kamwangi Economic Stimulus Programme Market, which has an allocation of Sh380 million.
Kindiki said the markets are meant to give traders better conditions, describing the aim as moving women who run small businesses out of sun, dust and mud into modern premises where they can trade with dignity.
Other allocations cited during the tour include Sh320 million for student hostels at Mang'u Technical Training Institute and Sh65 million for last-mile electricity connections expected to reach 700 households in the constituency, The Star, Kenya reports. Kindiki presented the projects as part of a broader push to raise living standards and widen access to infrastructure and economic opportunity, and said development was being pursued across Kiambu County and elsewhere in Kenya regardless of location.
Warning on illicit brews
The Deputy President also repeated the government's warning to those involved in making and distributing illicit alcohol, which he called a threat to the country's future, according to The Star, Kenya. He said authorities would step up efforts to break the production, transport and supply of illegal and toxic drinks, and warned those responsible that they would be pursued and their operations shut down.
The Star, Kenya also reported separately that Kindiki praised President William Ruto for expanding democracy and rights, and, in reporting by Daily Nation, that he characterised the 2027 election as a contest between development and what he called noise.
What to watch: whether the revived Thika–Magumu Road and the Gatundu North markets stay on schedule, and how far the accountability argument travels beyond the constituency as the 2027 campaign gathers pace.
