Homa Bay Town Member of Parliament, Peter Kaluma, has spoken out in defense of President William Ruto after the Head of State faced public criticism for launching a transformer during his recent tour of the Western region.
Kaluma made his remarks on Wednesday, April 9, while addressing Parliament, saying the President’s action was not only necessary but also worth celebrating.
According to the MP, the installation of a transformer is a significant step in improving electricity access in rural areas.
He emphasized that for many people living in villages, especially those without power, the presence of a transformer represents hope and progress.
“Honourable Speaker, some people made fun of the President for launching a transformer,” Kaluma stated. “But the reality is that in some places, having a transformer is a very big deal.
It changes lives because it means those homes can now have electricity. It becomes easier to light up rural areas, and that is something to be happy about.”
Kaluma went on to give real-life examples from his own constituency, where many villages still remain in darkness due to a lack of electricity.
He said that for such communities, a transformer is not just another government project — it’s a life-changing development that deserves recognition.
His defense of Ruto comes amid growing criticism from opposition leaders and social media users who questioned why a president would launch something as small as a transformer.
Many argued that such tasks should be left to junior government officials and not the Head of State.
Critics pointed to leaders like Murang’a Governor Irungu Kang’ata, who has been commissioning large-scale projects such as hospitals, road networks, and smart city initiatives, suggesting that Ruto’s launch was underwhelming in comparison.
Notable opposition figures, including former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua and Democratic Action Party of Kenya (DAP-K) leader Eugene Wamalwa, also took issue with the transformer event.
They described it as a poor reflection of leadership and the country’s developmental priorities.
Despite the backlash, Kaluma urged people to look at the broader impact of such initiatives. He said that even small efforts to expand power connectivity contribute to the overall improvement of Kenya’s national electricity grid.
“Any initiative, no matter how small, that helps expand power supply across the country will eventually have a chain reaction — it lights up homes, schools, and businesses,” Kaluma noted.
He also highlighted the importance of electricity in powering modern sectors of the economy, especially the growing digital space.
“Honourable Speaker, our economy depends on electricity. Sectors like the digital economy simply can’t function without a stable power supply,” he added.
Kaluma, a close ally of opposition leader Raila Odinga, also praised President Ruto for launching the Last Mile Connectivity project in Bungoma.
He described it as a bold and essential step toward bringing electricity to underserved communities, and a move that should be applauded rather than ridiculed.
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