President Uhuru on Friday fielded questions on a bewildering array of issues from journalists from different local media outlets in Mombasa.
When it came to the 2022 question, the president failed to explicitly endorse the candidature of his deputy William Ruto who has made public his intention to run.
He said that he was not ready to talk about 2022 issues and would rather focus on delivering on his pledges to Kenyans.
This response, which will most definitely incense Ruto allies, was a departure from his pre-poll pledge to support Ruto's 2022 candidacy.
There are reasons the president failed to offer that ringing endorsement in Friday's interview.
The main one is caution not to endanger progress made thanks to his handshake with opposition leader Raila Odinga.
Endorsing his deputy would cause political tensions that would not offer a conducive environment for him to pursue his much-touted Big Four Agenda.
Uhuru recognises how polarising his endorsement of Ruto would be as it would divide Kenyans.
He needs the goodwill of Raila Odinga's supporters to move the country forward and is keen on not stoking their anger with an endorsement of Ruto.
In the interview, the president said that he had agreed with Raila not to talk about 2022 issues and his non-committal response on who he would support in the next presidential elections must be in keeping with that agreement.
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