Sifuna Responds After Ruto Calls Him “Mr. Empty” and Raises Questions Over President’s Remarks

President William Ruto and Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna have exchanged sharp remarks following a disagreement over the proposed Dangote East African Refinery in Lamu.

Ruto criticised Sifuna after the senator questioned the government over the agreement surrounding the Sh2.2 trillion refinery project. The President referred to Sifuna as “Mr. Empty” and challenged him over his position on major infrastructure and investment projects.

“When did you start liking shiny things?” Ruto asked, referring to Sifuna’s demand for details of the agreement involving the government and Dangote Group. The President also questioned whether Sifuna had previously dismissed projects such as roads, railways and the refinery as unnecessary “shiny things.”

Ruto further alleged that Sifuna had been sent by a political sponsor to seek the refinery agreement, claiming that the intention was to create an opportunity to pressure Nigerian businessman Aliko Dangote. Those allegations were made by Ruto and have not been independently established.

Sifuna, meanwhile, responded to the President’s remarks by questioning the direction of political debate ahead of the 2027 General Election.

The senator asked whether Kenyans should be focusing on elections and national issues or turning against one another because of political differences. He also questioned Ruto’s description of him as “Mr. Empty,” asking whether the President was troubled by his questions.

The disagreement comes shortly after the groundbreaking of the Dangote refinery in Lamu. The project is expected to have a processing capacity of up to 700,000 barrels of crude oil per day and is projected to create thousands of employment opportunities.

Sifuna has maintained that Parliament should be allowed to scrutinise the agreements and commitments made by the government regarding the investment.

The latest exchange between the two leaders has sparked fresh discussion about the refinery, transparency and the increasingly heated political debate ahead of 2027.

The remarks have also been widely shared on social media, with the latest Facebook updates highlighting the back-and-forth between Ruto and Sifuna.

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