Mumias East Member of Parliament (MP) Peter Salasya has pledged to ensure that Kenyans fully benefit from the country’s natural resources if he ever becomes the president.
In a statement shared on his Instagram page on Saturday, February 8, 2025, Salasya expressed his frustration over how Kenya’s rich natural resources are only benefiting a few cartels instead of the general population.
“The moment I become President of Kenya, I will make sure Kenyans enjoy the natural resources that God gave us as a country. It’s so sad that God gave us a lot of iron ore in Mbeere and Ukambani, but it’s only benefiting cartels,” Salasya said.
The unapologetically vocal lawmaker criticized the current state of affairs, noting that Kenya could have become a major exporter of steel due to its abundant iron ore deposits. However, despite these resources, the prices of steel have doubled, making it difficult to support government initiatives like the affordable housing program.
“This could have made Kenya the major exporter of steel, but surprisingly the prices of steel have doubled, and we’re talking about the affordable housing concept. The same applies to cement, where we have our clinker in Baringo, Ukambani, and Kajiado, but the cement prices keep going up from Ksh850 to Ksh930,” he added.
Salasya assured his followers that he plans to raise these issues in Parliament when it reopens next week. However, he noted that he would be more effective in addressing such concerns if he were the President of the Republic of Kenya.
“Though as we open the parliament next week, I will raise these issues in the House, but I will have done it better as the president of this Republic,” Salasya stated.
Inflation
This is not the first time the outspoken lawmaker has criticized the government over the high cost of building materials. In November 2024, he slammed the government for claiming that the cost of living had reduced, pointing out that the prices of essential commodities, including cement, continued to rise.
At the time, Salasya criticized the government, noting that despite Kenya’s natural resources like clinker in Kajiado and West Pokot, cement prices rose from Ksh700 to Ksh900 per bag.
“It’s a natural resource God gave us freely, but we can’t see the difference… And they claim inflation has reduced? Lies!” he stated, arguing that even construction has become challenging.
His remarks were a response to a November 4, 2024, government announcement where spokesperson Isaac Mwaura highlighted progress in reducing living costs.
“These efforts are being driven by sector-specific initiatives… Fuel prices have decreased without subsidies, leading to immediate savings,” Mwaura said in a press briefing.
He added that essential items like unga, sugar, cooking gas, and cooking oil are now more affordable, with inflation dropping to 3.6 per cent, the lowest since 2012.
