How Ruto Lifted Millicent Omanga From a Street Vendor to Senator

Growing up in Kisii and Kajiado, Millicent Omanga was an average girl not sure about her future especially after her father died in road accident while she was in high school.

It is however her association with William Ruto before the 2013 elections that paved way for her success through state parastatals to being a popular nominated Senator.

It is unclear how a girl from humble background linked up with political honchos but as Omanga’s political future seems to take a bleak turn, we look at how now Deputy President Ruto build her.

The bootylicious Omanga is among five Jubilee nominated Senators who have been expelled from the party after they failed to attend a meeting convened by President Uhuru Kenyatta on Monday.

The Ruto supporter and campaigner for his 2022 Presidential dreams has been on front-line criticising Uhuru after the union between the President and his deputy started collapsing since the handshake between Uhuru and his fiercest rival Raila Odinga.

Omanga has publicly revealed she was uplifted politically and financially by Ruto. She became a globetrotter because of the man from Sugoi.

In late 2011 Ruto picked Omanga as one of the vice-chairpersons of United Democratic Movement (UDM) party which Ruto wanted to contest Presidency in.

This is the party that later became United Republican Party which merged with Uhuru’s The National Alliance (TNA) party to form Jubilee Party which propelled both into the big office.

Omanga was selling bedsheets in Nairobi streets and running her then small company; Milways Enterprises which deals in construction, interior décor and import of furniture.

Omanga then and now.

When Uhuru and Ruto won the elections in 2013, Ruto had Omanga given a job right away as a director of the Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen). In a past interview she revealed;

“When Energy CS Davis Chirchir called and asked if I was in Nairobi before directing me to rush to his office, I wondered what I had done. I got to his office and he informed me that the following day, KenGen would be holding its annual general meeting and that I had been nominated as one of the directors. I could not believe it,”.

She was now earning good money, getting government deals and connections. She was gaining popularity.

Omanga with President Uhuru.

She abandoned the bedsheets ‘hawking’ business and became a policy maker in critical government body.

Through Ruto she met the who-is-who in government including Uhuru. At this juncture she decided to vie for Nairobi Women Rep seat.

In Jubilee primaries she faced off then incumbent Women Rep Rachel Shebesh but she lost. Shebesh lost to ODM’s Esther Passaris in the final polls.

Omanga was jobless, feeling defeat but again Ruto was not letting her go down.

Her with Raila Odinga.

He had her nominated Senator and in no time she was making news and bulldozing interests of the DP and Jubilee party.

In political rallies and on social media, Omanga is ready for a war of words and even going tribal to face off the critics of Ruto.

“I ran for the Nairobi Woman Rep seat, but I did not make it. But that one man believed in my potential. If it were not for William Ruto, I would not be a senator today. He believes in empowering young people. He believes in empowerment of women,” she says.

Omanga (L) when she was a young girl.