Office of the First Daughter a private affair, Charlene Ruto tells Kenyans

President William Ruto's daughter Charlene Ruto attending a meeting in Morocco in November 2022. [The Standard]

President William Ruto's daughter Charlene Ruto says she referred to the entity handling her diary as Office of the First Daughter in private capacity, and not a public-funded office.

In a press statement on Wednesday, December 14, Charlene clarified that the office was neither constitutional, nor was it drawing funds from the National Treasury.

The president's daughter came under sharp criticism on Tuesday, December 13, when she introduced her delegation to Tanzania as members of staff at the Office of the First Daughter.

At the time, she was addressing delegates at the 2022 YouLead Summit held at the East African Community Headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania.

"The Office of the First Daughter is a private entity. It is neither a constitutional office, nor is it being funded by Kenyan taxpayers. It purely facilitates the activities and programmes run by myself," Charlene Ruto said.

She further noted that the office amplifies the Kenyan youth's voices in efforts to enable them get personal development opportunities.

"Through its independent structure and facilitators, the office has engaged various players across Kenya and beyond in line with some of its objectives of championing youth-based agenda and climate change advocacy," said Charlene Ruto.