Former President Uhuru Kenyatta has handed over the leadership of the Jubilee Party to his deputy, Fred Matiang’i, ahead of the party’s National Delegates Convention (NDC).
Speaking during a meeting with Jubilee officials in Nairobi on Tuesday, September 22, Uhuru said he would remain a member of the party while taking up a senior advisory role.
The former president said he had opted to allow Matiang’i to assume the party leadership pending the NDC, which is expected to formalise the changes.
“While we wait for NDC, I have decided to let my deputy take over the party leadership. I want to ask you respectfully to accept Fred Matiang’i to take the position of Jubilee party leader,” Uhuru stated.
Kenyatta maintained that he would continue being part of Jubilee but would step back from direct party leadership.
“I am still in Jubilee. I will be a senior member of the party and will be offering advisory services,” he added.
Matiang’i had been serving as Uhuru’s deputy party leader alongside Jeremiah Kioni.
In his acceptance speech, Matiang’i pledged to continue with the party’s leadership from where Uhuru left off.
“The way you have trusted me, I want to promise you, sir, that I will never let you down,” the former Interior Cabinet Secretary stated.
Uhuru’s decision comes after a recent court ruling barred him from holding a leadership position in a political party for six months after leaving office.
Following the September 14 court ruling, Uhuru indicated that he was prepared to relinquish the party leadership, explaining that the delayed transition had been caused by an internal dispute.
"In regard to the long-delayed handover of the Party chairmanship, the office clarifies that this process was not stalled by reluctance, but by a contested internal dispute that required legal clarity. With the court's guidance, that path is now clear," read a statement from Uhuru's office.
At Tuesday's meeting, the retired President urged Jubilee members to set aside their differences and maintain unity as the party charts its political course ahead of the 2027 General Election.
Following the September 14 court ruling, Uhuru indicated that he was prepared to relinquish the party leadership, explaining that the delayed transition had been caused by an internal dispute.
"In regard to the long-delayed handover of the Party chairmanship, the office clarifies that this process was not stalled by reluctance, but by a contested internal dispute that required legal clarity. With the court's guidance, that path is now clear," read a statement from Uhuru's office.
At Tuesday's meeting, the retired President urged Jubilee members to set aside their differences and maintain unity as the party charts its political course ahead of the 2027 General Election.
