‘I have no stolen money for my campaign’, Matiang’i hits back over 2027 funding claims

Jubilee Party Leader Dr Fred Matiang'i on Saturday discounted rumours that he lacked funds to mount a successful presidential campaign ahead of next year's elections.

"I may not have the money some expect, but I have something far more valuable — my integrity," he declared.

Dr Matiang'i dismissed what he termed desperate propaganda that he lacked funds, stating that he did not need to steal to show financial muscle to manage his political affairs.

"I have heard some leaders in government, who walk with the President, claiming that I do not have money for campaigns... That Matiang'i has no money and cannot mount a presidential campaign. Yes, they are right; I don't have money... stolen money. They are right," said Dr Matiang'i.

He added: "It is true I don't have all that money. This is because I have not engaged in G-to-G with the government; I have not done business with parastatals. I have not sold Kenya Pipeline or KCC; I haven't sold anything. I haven't gone to Safaricom to sell shares. I have not been involved in theft. I have not been bribed to give out licences for gambling."

The former Interior Cabinet Secretary accused the current leadership of institutionalising corruption and bribery in the public sector, so that services to wananchi had become tools for graft.

"If you want your licence for a gambling business to be renewed, you must bribe. Those working in betting companies can tell you how they are suffering," said Dr Matiang'i.

"Contractors must bribe... If you have collected all that, you must be having a lot of money."

He said he was not in the presidential race because he had stolen money to mount a campaign. His finances, he said, came from well-wishers and friends.

"I haven't collected like them, so I don't have all that money. The little I have comes from donations from friends and members of the public," he said.

Dr Matiang'i said he stood for an accountable government where integrity formed an integral part of public service.

"We want to live a life of integrity and do what is right in the eyes of men and God. We want to make our country great and bring about positive changes," he added.

He defended his integrity and commitment to ethical leadership, saying he had a clean public record and that attempts to throw mud at him won't stick.

Opposition leaders 

Dr Matiang'i spoke on Saturday during a church service at Magena Main SDA Church in Bomachoge Borabu. On Sunday, key opposition leaders, including Ndindi Nyoro, Martha Karua, and James Orengo, are expected to join him at ACK Church Kisii for a service before holding rallies in Kisii town and Keroka.

He was hosted by Bomachoge Borabu Member of Parliament Obadiah Barongo, accompanied by Nyamira Senator Okong'o Omogeni, MPs Clive Gisairo (Kitutu Masaba) and Anthony Kibagendi (Kitutu Chache South), and former Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu, among others.

"The President, honourable, some of us respect him. But we were not raised to give out abuses. Some things are shocking; the opposition is not the problem. Kenyans, clergy, and people are talking — talking about how you are horribly incompetent and how you have failed to run the country," said the Jubilee presidential hopeful.

"Your incompetence is evident everywhere. It reaches a point when the President is bribing people to listen to him. He carries money in bags. He was captured on video in Kisii ordering his people to give a certain MP two million to help mobilise people for him in Keroka. In a responsible world, do people do such things? Kenyans are just shocked," said Dr Matiang'i.

This past week, the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB) — led by Chairman Archbishop Maurice Muhatia and Vice-Chairman Archbishop Anthony Muheria — issued a major statement calling for national unity, political decency, and the protection of sacred spaces ahead of the 2027 General Election.

The bishops declared a nationwide ban on political addresses and campaigning inside all Catholic churches, instructing priests to keep places of worship as neutral grounds for prayer and unity rather than political arenas.

Follow our WhatsApp channel for breaking news updates and more stories like this.