Nairobi — Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has called out South Africa's Economic Freedom Fighters' (EFF) leader Julius Malema for "meddling in Kenya's internal affairs".

Gachagua dismissed Malema's criticism of President William Ruto's administration over broken promises calling on Malema to stay focused on the affairs of his country.

"He only arrived [from South Africa] in the morning and purports to know Kenyan issues more than we do. We want to call on leaders from other countries to instead go to the coast and sunbathe and then fly back. Leave Kenyan issues to us," the DP said.

He cited South Africa's perennial power outages as one key challenge facing the South African nation.

"We never talk about their power issues," Gachagua stated.

Malema, who arrived in Kenya on Wednesday to attend the launch of the Pan African Institute (PAI) at Likunya University in Makueni County, accused President Ruto of backtracking on his commitment to unite African leaders in abandoning the use of the United States dollar, highlighting a contradiction between the President's words and his actions.

Addressing the audience while delivering his keynote speech at the event, Malema questioned President Ruto's sincerity.

"I do not know if President Ruto means it because he said so many things, and I cannot locate him these days because the things he said during the election and the things he is doing now are two different things."

President Ruto had initially made the commitment to promote the use of the Pan-African Payments and Settlement System (PAPSS) to facilitate trade between African nations in their respective local currencies, a stance he reiterated during a forum on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) in Nairobi on May 30, 2023.

Malema also criticized President Ruto for warmly welcoming King Charles III and Queen Camilla during their visit to Kenya from October 31 to November 4, 2023.

Malema argued that this visit showed a lack of respect for the Kenyan people, who endured significant losses and suffering during the colonial era while striving for their independence.

"Those who killed our people in the Mau Mau rebellion cannot be saluted by the same army of the children of those who were killed during the rebellion," he declared.