Naivasha MP Jayne Kihara Snubs President Ruto’s State of the Nation Address
Naivasha Member of Parliament (MP) Jayne Kihara has announced she will boycott President William Ruto’s State of the Nation Address, dismissing it as repetitive and offering no new solutions to Kenya’s pressing challenges.
Speaking at Parliament on Thursday, November 20, 2025, the MP, allied with the former Deputy President and the United Opposition, stated that she will skip the joint sitting of the National Assembly and Senate, where the president is constitutionally required to brief the nation. Instead, Kihara revealed she will travel to Narok to campaign for the Democracy for Citizens Party candidate in the Narok Town by-election.
“There is nothing new the president will say. I will not enter Parliament; I will hear it from afar. I am going to Narok to campaign. State of the Nation? I live in Kenya; I understand the regrets people face. I know what we were promised — jobs abroad that never materialised. Nothing new to expect,” Kihara said in Swahili.
The law obliges the president to deliver the address under Article 132(1)(a) of the Constitution, covering the nation’s progress toward national values, security status, and fulfillment of international obligations. Following the speech, MPs are required to debate the report and deliberate on the country’s current trajectory.
Kihara criticised the government’s handling of economic and social issues, highlighting the high cost of living, a struggling economy, and the plight of Kenyans misled into working abroad under false promises. She argued that her on-the-ground perspective gives her a clearer understanding of the nation’s challenges than the president.
Parliament is now prepared for the address, with both the Speaker of the National Assembly and Senate already at the precincts awaiting President Ruto’s speech.
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Naivasha MP Jayne Kihara Snubs President Ruto’s State of the Nation Address