NAIROBI — The withdrawal of Justin Muturi’s security detail this week has added fuel to the already simmering feud between the former Public Service CS/AG and President William Ruto.
Speaking calmly but with a measured firmness, Muturi told The Standard that he discovered the withdrawal late Monday night. “There was no prior warning, no written communication. My security team was simply told not to show up,” he said.
Muturi, who also served as Public Service Cabinet Secretary until recently, suspects the decision was politically driven. “They claim I’m fighting the government. If that’s their reason, so be it,” he remarked. “But let it be clear — intimidation does not work on me.”
The development follows weeks of escalating political sparring between the two men. Muturi, once an ally of Ruto, has become one of his most outspoken critics. In a recent television interview, he declared, “I think William Ruto is unfit for the position of President. He is irredeemably corrupt. It pains me to say that.”
Under the Retirement Benefits Act for senior state officers, Muturi is legally entitled to two armed officers, given his tenure as Speaker of the National Assembly. He said he had invoked that provision — but it seems those entitlements are now in limbo.
“It’s not about the guards,” Muturi added, “It’s about principle. If this is how we treat those who voice dissent, then we are sliding down a dangerous path.”
He is not the only high-profile figure to face this sort of action. In 2023, Chief Justice Martha Koome had her security detail withdrawn in a move she condemned as unconstitutional. That same year, former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s protection was quietly reduced.
Then-Inspector General of Police Japheth Koome defended the scaling back, arguing it was about rank and role, not politics. But critics saw a pattern — one that appears to be continuing.
With Kenya’s political landscape increasingly polarised, the removal of Muturi’s security feels less like administrative housekeeping and more like a message. Whether that message silences him, however, is another matter entirely.
“Let them come,” Muturi said with a wry smile. “I’ll speak the truth with or without security.”
