Skater Kevin Kiarie Ruhiu has spoken out against Sports Cabinet Secretary Salim Mvurya, pushing back hard against claims that the ministry backed his trips to international competitions.
Ruhiu says the public statements do not match what actually happened on the ground. He insists he never got any direct money from the Ministry of Sports for those events, even though the ministry told the country it was supporting him.
According to Ruhiu, Principal Secretary Elijah Mwangi announced that the ministry would help him take part in the World Skate Games.
Yet when the time came, he and the people around him had to dig into their own pockets to cover the cost of his ticket and accommodation.
The promised help never arrived in any form he could use. He also points out that the same pattern repeated with the African Championship and other competitions.
Funds were supposedly approved for his participation, but nothing reached him.This is not a small complaint. Athletes in Kenya often train with limited resources and rely on official support when they qualify for big events.
When a ministry publicly claims credit for helping a competitor, the expectation is that the help is real. Ruhiu’s account suggests the opposite happened.
The announcements were made, the photographs were taken, and the statements were issued, but the practical support he needed to travel and compete was missing.
Mvurya’s office later put out a clarification focused on visa support. The statement tried to draw a line between different kinds of assistance.
Yet Ruhiu’s position remains clear: he did not receive the financial backing that was announced. For an athlete who has to raise money from supporters just to get on a plane, the difference between a visa letter and actual cash for flights and lodging is everything.
The issue goes beyond one skater. It raises questions about how the ministry tracks and delivers the support it publicly commits to. When funds are said to have been approved but the athlete still has to crowdfund basic travel costs, the system looks broken.
Kenyan sports fans and athletes themselves have seen this story too many times. Promises are easy to make in front of cameras.
Delivery is what counts.
Ruhiu has chosen to speak openly instead of staying quiet. That decision puts pressure on the ministry to explain exactly what support was given, when it was given, and through which channels. Vague clarifications about visas will not settle the matter if the core claim is that the money never reached the athlete. Until clear proof of direct financial assistance is produced, Ruhiu’s version of events stands as a direct challenge to the official narrative.
The people who compete for Kenya deserve better than announcements that do not translate into real help. Kevin Kiarie Ruhiu has made that point in plain language. The ministry now has to answer in equally plain terms.
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