Don't hide behind gender: Kenyans react to Wamuchomba, Karua's presidential declarations
People's Liberation Party leader Martha Karua (left) and Githunguri MP Gathoni Wamuchomba. The two have expressed interest to run for the presidency.
What you need to know:
- MP Gathoni Wamuchomba and PLP leader Martha Karua announced presidential bids within 36 hours of each other.
- Wamuchomba focused on economic transformation and received positive feedback based on her constituency achievements.
- Karua's gender-focused "mother's care" approach was criticised online, with Kenyans advising her to emphasise policy solutions instead.
In under 36 hours, two outspoken women leaders in their own right struck a chord in Kenya’s rhythm of politics – they declared their interest to run for the country’s top seat.
On one side was Gathoni Wamuchomba, one of the 29 women elected in 2022 to represent their constituencies in Parliament. She currently serves as the Member of Parliament for Githunguri. A recent performance survey by Infotrak ranked her among the top-performing legislators, placing her in fourth position nationally.
On the other hand was Martha Karua, leader of the People’s Liberation Party (PLP), formerly known as the National Rainbow Coalition-Kenya (Narc-Kenya). As Minister for Water Resources Management and Development from 2003 to 2005 under President Mwai Kibaki’s administration, Karua is credited with implementing the Water Act (2002), a reform that catalysed the revival of numerous irrigation projects across the country.
Their declarations came one after the other: Wamuchomba first, via her X account on April 20, 2025; Karua followed the next day in Isiolo County.
But how did the public respond?
Wamuchomba anchored her ambition not in the comfort of political privilege, but in the lived realities of ordinary Kenyans.
“I will turn available labour into wealth. I will create cottage industries and subsidise power,” she declared.
She added: “When I’m president, we will no longer export raw macadamia, coffee or tea. Instead, we shall process them locally and sell the finished products. I will revamp the Agricultural Mechanisation Unit to support value addition.”
She pledged that under her leadership, wigs for women and sanitary towels would be manufactured locally using banana fibres and other biodegradable materials.
Wamuchomba also promised to introduce Cottage Special Zones with subsidised power and water rates, alongside a Cottage Fund for incubation in every county.
“Who will make me president?” she asked.
And some Kenyans threw the question back at her: what have you done already?
She had an answer. “Visit my constituency. My coffee factories, once shut down, are now reopened. Abandoned coffee farmers are now producing vibrantly, and all my primary schools provide hot lunches.”
She went on: “Avocados are being planted in large numbers for aggregation. Security has improved. We’ve completed seven new police stations. Village tailors are back in business, making school uniforms without relying on imports.”
True to her word, some vouched for her based on her track record.
“The good lady is working. I always pray she could be our Kitui East MP for even 180 days,” said one user on X.
Another added: “I go to Githunguri Constituency often. This woman has done her best—and you can see it, even if you’re blind.”
Some even declared support for her presidential bid.
“You have my support. We need a leader like you,” one stated.
Yet the support came with a caution: “Don’t hide behind gender. You can be president without bashing the other gender. Yes, you can.”
For Karua, the online reaction was far more critical.
In her announcement, she said: “The position I am seeking is the presidency, so that as a woman I can take care of the country the way a mother takes care of her household.”
She continued: “A mother cannot let even one child go to bed hungry. Even if the food is little, she shares it so everyone gets something. Even a passer-by receives a portion. We want Kenya’s cake to be shared equally, not as it is now. You’ve tried men all these years. This time, try a woman from PLP.”
But her message sparked criticism online, with many questioning whether gender alone could form the basis of a campaign.
“Manifesto yake ni kuwa mwanamke ama? [Is her manifesto just about being a woman, or what?],” one user asked.
Another echoed: “Pia mimi nashangaa [I’m also wondering]. What women forget is that if you genderise your campaign, men will see it as a women-only affair and won’t show up or vote for you.”
One user advised: “Try instead to talk about policy and the solutions you’d bring to the nation.”
In a previous interview, former Gender Cabinet Secretary Prof Margaret Kobia offered some perspective: “In future, leaders will simply be leaders; not ‘women leaders’ or ‘men leaders.’ Women should position themselves as leaders.”