Justina Wamae Launches Imarisha Uchumi Party and Declares 2027 Presidential Bid

Former Roots Party deputy presidential candidate Justina Wamae introduced the Imarisha Uchumi Party in Utawala, Nairobi on Sunday, October 25, and used the event to announce her candidacy for the 2027 General Election.

The new party, which obtained its registration certificate on October 15, will put forward candidates for every elective office and is branded with the slogan “Inatuhusu”. Wamae said she is willing to cooperate with opposition figures who share her policy vision, but any coalition must be founded on common ideas rather than a quest for power.

Central to her platform is a pledge to devote a quarter of the national budget to agriculture, a sector she believes can drive growth and create jobs. “We shall allocate 25 percent of our national budget to agriculture,” she declared. She also promised to broaden the National Youth Service so that it operates in all 290 constituencies if she becomes president, and to set up a transparent system for youth employment that does not depend on personal connections.

On housing policy, Wamae vowed to eliminate the Affordable Housing Levy and to return contributions to those who wish to withdraw from the scheme. She explained that refunds would include interest, with the rate to be agreed upon together with the Central Bank of Kenya and the National Treasury, and that houses would be sold on mortgage to participants who continue paying.

Wamae’s political résumé includes serving as the running mate to Roots Party leader George Wajackoyah in the 2022 presidential race, where their ticket received 61,969 votes. She left the Roots Party in September 2022 after a dispute with its leader and later founded the Inatuhusu Movement to encourage participation by women, mothers and young people in politics.

Academically, she holds a Bachelor of Commerce in Management Information Systems from Daystar University, a graduate diploma from the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply, a master’s degree in Procurement and Logistics from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, and an MBA in Strategic Management from the same university. Prior to entering politics, she worked in marketing and supply-chain management and established businesses in the freight and logistics sector.