President Uhuru Kenyatta's whereabouts draw Kenyans' curiosity

President Uhuru Kenyatta interacts with voters at Mutomo Primary School in Kiambu County on Tuesday, August 9, 2022. [File, The Standard]

For four days now, President Uhuru Kenyatta has been away from the media limelight, with questions arising on his whereabouts.

The president was last seen in public on August 13, 2022, when he met a team of AU and COMESA election observers at State House, Nairobi.

The team briefed him on how they felt about the then-progress of Kenya's elections.

In his message to the observers, Kenyatta said he was satisfied with how the August 9, 2022 General Election was conducted in a peaceful manner.

"The only anxiety witnessed [among Kenyans] has been that of anticipation [of results], but not of fear," he said at the time.

On Monday, August 15, William Ruto of United Democratic Alliance (UDA) Party was declared president-elect with a majority of the votes.

President Kenyatta as of the time of publishing this story, was yet to publicly comment on the election outcome.

Some observers said it would have been appropriate if he congratulated Ruto.

Addressing journalists on Monday, shortly after receiving his election certificate from IEBC chairperson Wafula Chebukati, Ruto said he was yet to meet or speak with the outgoing Head of State.

"I'm sure there'll be a conversation [between Kenyatta and I] because I'm now the president-elect. There has to be a transition. At some point this evening or maybe tomorrow (Tuesday), we will have a conversation," he said.

President Kenyatta openly endorsed Ruto's main rival Raila Odinga in the run-up to August 9, 2022 polls, saying the ODM leader meant well for Kenya.

On several occasions, the president accused his deputy of condoning grand theft in government during Jubilee Party's first term.

Despite the onslaught against his deputy, Ruto still managed a higher number of votes in the presidential election, including in Kenyatta's Mt. Kenya backyard.

The president's candidate, Raila Odinga, said he won't accept the election outcome, claiming it was marred by malpractices at the tallying stage.

He accuses Chebukati of engineering the "unfairness" meted out on him and his running mate Martha Karua.

A section of online users, including leaders affiliated to Azimio la Umoja-One Kenya Coalition, have been asking President Kenyatta to intervene on the electoral outcome.

The president has, however, maintained his silence. His thoughts on the election outcome remains only known to him.

The Standard reached State House spokesperson Kanze Dena-Mararo to comment on the president's whereabouts.

"I have no comment on that," she said on phone on Wednesday afternoon.

Meanwhile, a power transition committee says plans are underway to ensure a smooth administration to the president-elect when the time comes.