Ngilu Speech on
day she graduated
"Today is a great day. A great day not just for me, my family, my friends but for the cause of leadership in this country. It is a great day because the power of collective effort has delivered success yet again. I stand here humbled by the support I received from so many individuals in the course of my academic journey.
To the Vice Chancellor-Professor. Galgalo, the Deputy Vice Chancellor-Professor. Esther Mombo, Mrs. Truphy Kwaka Sumba- Ag. Principal of the Nairobi Campus and Lecturers and the whole SPU community -thank you for walking with me through this journey.
To my Permanent Secretary and staff of the Ministry of Water and Irrigation- I am grateful to you for keeping the Ministry on course while I sought the power to read do all that appertains to the degree that I received today.
To Nduku- I want to thank you for the wake up calls, early morning pancakes and packed lunches that kept me going.
To Margaret, Dorcas, Mary, Mutinda, Lillian and Mueke -Thank you very much for patiently waiting on me through the long hours including weekends and public holidays while I studied.
To my Kitui Central constituents- I appreciate you for understanding that my long absence from the constituency was for a good cause.
To all my friends gathered here-Thank you for your moral support and for making time to come and celebrate with me.
Last but not least to my family, Lunde, Mwende, Syalo and Billy, words cannot describe nor measure my level of gratitude for all the support you continue to give me. I love you my children; I love you all.
Today, I can proudly say that for the last 20 years, I have served my beloved country in various leadership capacities with diligence and focus. Ten of these years, were spent on the opposition benches in parliament fighting for better governance. Whereas, I have served in the cabinet for the last 10 years, I have never lost focus on my fight for justice and equity in our society. I have contributed to seeing Kitui grow from a small struggling county to becoming one of the fastest growing economic hubs in Kenya. It now boasts of many facilities in Healthcare, Education, Water and Energy infrastructure. I have presided over two ministries, the one of Health and now Water and Irrigation, that have witnessed significant growth under my leadership.
Despite all these achievements and the many years that I have had in leadership, I felt that something was still missing. It’s been 50 years. 50 years after independence majority of our people are still living in poverty. There are glaring inequalities in our society. Over 22 million Kenyans live in abject poverty unable to meet their daily basic needs. All our key sectors like healthcare, agriculture, tourism and education are struggling.
Let us reflect on our educational sector for instance. The 2009 Census Report has frightening statistics on Education. The report indicates that there are a total of 6.6 million Kenyan children who are out of school.
There are 2.1 million children between the ages of 3 and 5 years who are out of Nursery schools.
· Another 1.9 million children between 6 and 13 years who are out of Primary schools.
· It gets worse, 2.6 million children between 13 and 17 years are out of Secondary schools
These children are facing a very bleak future and are unlikely to ever escape the poverty trap. This is totally unacceptable. We are condemning these children to early marriages, delinquency and destitution.
Education should not and must not be a privilege of the few but a right for all Kenyan children as stipulated in the Constitution. Education becomes a privilege when children cannot go to school because they are poor or cannot afford a meal to keep them in school. It is a privilege when lack of basic items like food, water, uniforms,desks, toilets or sanitary towels become obstacles to accessing education. Education is a privilege when a parent has to choose to either send their child to pick coffee, to become a house-help or to get married to the old man next door to get out of poverty.
Out of this sad situation, you will find teenage pregnant girls and juvenile fathers all over the country in Busia, Kwale, Emali, Narok and even Nairobi just to mention a few places. Unless we find a way of ensuring that these children go to and stay in school now, we are fomenting a civil rebellion defined by spiraling insecurity. We are courting instability even as we dream of Vision 2030.
This is just an example of an issue that any concerned leader should employ their skills to solve.
As a country we have very many highly qualified leaders in senior positions. Why have these leaders been unable to transform the lives of Kenyans to better living standards? If these leaders have the relevant qualifications to respond to the needs of the people, what is lacking? My hypothesis is that while well qualified, most of our leaders still do not escalate the role of Leadership and Management. Our leadership neither cares nor has the will, the tools and the skills to tackle the pressing challenges Kenyans face today. Our challenges today have to be tackled using different tools, skills and mindset.
In seeking to respond to these pertinent questions, I pursued a course that has expanded my horizons on matters of leadership and managerial skills. I found this apt and exclusive course on Leadership and Management at St. Paul’s University.
It is a rich course that exposes one to the wealth in the roles and responsibilities of good leadership. Indeed, leadership is about having a vision for the society. It is about sharing this vision and setting goals towards its attainment. Leadership is about influencing and working with people to achieve the set goals while overcoming the obstacles that come their way.
Therefore, this added knowledge that I have received from St. Paul’s University has given me an opportunity to address more clearly the basic issues that remain a thorn in our country’s flesh.
NARC, the party that I lead has identified “A Basic Needs Revolution” that promises Food and water; Healthcare; Education; Women empowerment and Wealth creation for Kenyans in 5 years. These are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time-bound objectives. It is a SMART plan. This is the smartest plan on the table today in this country.
Once we effectively tackle these 5 concerns we will put our country on the path of Prosperity, Equity and Justice. From my experiences as a student at St. Paul’s University, I have sharpened my vision for Kenya. It is clear in my mind how I will utilize the hands and minds of all Kenyans to take this country to prosperity. I am re-energized and rearing to improve the lives of Kenyans as I have detailed out in my 'Ahadi Tano Miaka Mitano' program.
God Bless SPU.
God bless all of you
God Bless our country Kenya.”
