Western Kenya Leaders Renew Threat to Strip Uhuru’s Pension
August 2026
Sirisia Member of Parliament John Waluke has threatened to sponsor a parliamentary motion stripping former President Uhuru Kenyatta of his pension, accusing him of staying active in politics well after leaving office. Waluke made the threat while addressing a United Democratic Alliance (UDA) public forum in Kakamega County on August 20. Kenyans.co.ke reports that Waluke told the crowd, “If the former President continues engaging in active politics, his pension should be withdrawn.”
Western Leaders’ Ultimatum
Kakamega County Deputy Governor Ayub Savula backed Waluke’s position at the same forum, urging him to team up with fellow lawmakers to push the motion through Parliament. Savula pointed to Section 6 of the Retirement Benefits Act, which he said bars a retired president from active party politics more than six months after leaving office.
The Kakamega forum was not an isolated event. Days earlier, Savula had made a nearly identical appeal, telling Waluke directly to “take that motion to Parliament” so that Kenyatta “quits politics,” according to a separate report. The leaders also allege, without providing public proof, that Kenyatta has been quietly funding the Linda Mwananchi Movement, a group they say is working to unseat President William Ruto in 2027.
A Fight That Started in May
This is not the first attempt to touch Kenyatta’s pension. Back in May, a senator tabled a motion in the Senate seeking to reduce or withdraw his retirement benefits after Kenyatta publicly endorsed Jubilee deputy leader Fred Matiang’i for the presidency during a homecoming event in Narok. That motion needs a two-thirds majority in Parliament to succeed, a threshold that has proved hard to reach in the past.
Kenyan courts have already dealt with similar efforts. Lawmakers once tried to deny former Prime Minister Raila Odinga and former Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka their benefits after the 2013 election, only for the High Court to strike down the relevant law in 2015. Democratic Party leader Justin Muturi has cited that precedent, warning that any fresh attempt against Kenyatta risks the same fate.
Kenyatta And Jubilee Push Back
Kenyatta has consistently rejected the idea that campaigning for his own party amounts to illegal political activity. Responding to the earlier Senate motion, he said, “I seek no elective seat, but I am a Jubilee member,” insisting he was simply defending his party’s agenda rather than chasing office.
Jubilee figures, including Matiang’i, have stood firmly behind him, arguing that a retired head of state keeps the constitutional right to speak on national affairs. Some political observers have gone further, describing the repeated benefits threats as a distraction tactic meant to pull attention away from harder conversations about the economy and 2027 party alliances, rather than a serious legal push.
What Is Really At Stake
The timing points to something bigger than one man’s pension. Western Kenya leaders, among them Kakamega Governor Fernandes Barasa, Bungoma Governor Kenneth Lusaka and National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula, have pledged four million votes for Ruto’s 2027 re-election bid. In return, the region is pressing hard for the Deputy Presidency slot on the 2027 ticket, alongside an understanding that would back a Luhya presidential run in 2032.
Whether Waluke actually tables a fresh motion, or whether this becomes another round of tough talk that fades once the cameras leave Kakamega, remains an open question. Given that an almost identical Senate attempt stalled earlier this year against the same constitutional hurdles, Kenyans watching this fight have good reason to wait for the actual paperwork before taking the threat at face value.
