William Ruto Reveals That His US Trip Was Sponsored By Govt Of United Arab Emirates

• President William Ruto gave in to pressure from Kenyans and disclosed the cost of his air transport to the US and the financiers behind it
• Ruto and his entourage boarded the deluxe Boeing 737-700 business jet of Dubai Royal Jet, which is believed to be highly pricey
• Kenyans posed questions as to why Ruto opted for the costly jet instead of keeping up with his preachings of austerity measures

Kai Eli, a journalist at TUKO.co.ke, brings more than three years of experience covering politics and current affairs in Kenya.

State House Nairobi has disclosed that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) government sponsored President William Ruto's air transport to the United States.

The head of state raised eyebrows after opting to board a pricey Royal Jet to America for his historic state visit.

Where did Ruto get jet offer from?

Kenyans scrutinising the trip wondered why the president would splurge millions on a single trip at a time when the country's economy was limping.

However, in response to the concerns, Ruto explained that friends of Kenya showed up with the jet offer.

The president revealed that the trip was subsidised by the said friends thus costing the Kenyan taxpayer less than KSh 10 million.

By records, a chartered jet by the Dubai airline operator would ordinarily cost over KSh 200 million for such trip.

In a follow-up statement, State House spokesperson Hussein Mohamed underscored the president's explanation that using the jet was a cost-cutting move.

"As explained by the President on Thursday, the cost of the jet he travelled in for the historic and successful US State Visit was offered by friends of Kenya at a relatively low cost. In this specific case, the United Arab Emirates Government offered the aircraft at less than KSh 10 million. This is how nations operate, supporting and partnering with each other for mutual prosperity, and there are plenty of examples to illustrate this,"partly read Hussein's statement.

Ruto travelled to the US on a state visit at the invitation of President Joe Biden.

Which plane did William Ruto use to fly to the US?

Ruto flew a chartered Boeing 737-700 business jet operated by Royal Jet of Dubai.

He abandoned the 26-seater Fokker 70ER, Harambee 1, due to its range limitations, as it can only travel for five hours nonstop.

In contrast, the stately Boeing 737-700 aircraft can fly in an ultralong range, exceeding most designed to fly between 10 and 12 hours a day.

A crosscheck into the Abu Dhabi-based airline showed it offers charter services for KSh 2.4m per hour.

According to the firm's quotation, a one-way 18-hour flight from Nairobi to Atlanta costs KSh 98 million.

This, coupled with his trip from Atlanta to Washington, would see Ruto's trip cross the KSh 200 million mark.

Proofreading by Mercy Nyambura Guthua, journalist and copy editor at TUKO.co.ke