Deputy President William Ruto Says NASA Companies Boycott is an Extortion Scheme

Deputy President William Ruto says that calls for boycott of products and services from specific companies by opposition National Super Alliance (NASA) is a plot to exhort money from the firms through intimidation.

Ruto's claims come after NASA-allied MPs on Friday urged supporters to boycott Safaricom, Bidco Industries and Brookside's products and services.

"We ask our people to stick to the list that we will provide from time to time," Suba North MP Millie Odhiambo said during a press conference at Okoa Kenya's office in Nairobi.

In a series of statements on his Twitter handle on Friday, Deputy President William Ruto called on the named companies not to fall prey to the criminal plot by the opposition.

"That companies have to 'donate' to supremo to avoid listing in the brazen and bizarre extortion racket-styled 'economic boycott'? Criminal!

"As GOK, we ask all companies to continue to partner with Kenyans, pay taxes only to KRA and reject the extortion scheme-styled economic boycott," He added.

Elgeyo Marakwet Senator Kipchumba Murkomen echoed Ruto's claims, saying that Nasa was broke and had resorted to soliciting cash from the corporates by threatening them with boycotts.

"NASA leaders led by Tinga (Raila Odinga) are soliciting bribes from companies to avoid naming them in the boycott list. It's not a boycott...they are just broke," he tweeted.