CS Matiang'i Fred Matiang'i. [Photo|Nation]
Fred Matiang'i, is a name that has been on the lips of many Kenyans.
Wherever he goes, the Cabinet Secretary in charge of Education and internal Security strikes the image of a no-nonsense bulldozer itching for a fight with anybody who dislikes order.
Indeed, he has shoved aside men who are allergic to order in society with the latest being NASA's Moses Wetangula whom he recently told off over 'non-sensical' questions.
He was appointed on May 15, 2017, with President Uhuru Kenyatta clearly instructing him that he must restore sanity in a sector that had been hijacked by cartels which were selling national examinations at throwaway prices throwaway prices.
Dr Matiang'i took the job from the ICT docket where he fought broadcasters who had refused to shift to the digital platform from the analogue one. On the deadline, he simply ordered analogue transmitters shut down plunging the country into digital darkness.
As Education CS, he began reforms in by placing principals and their deputies directly in charge of examinations. He then pushed teachers out of schools during the examination period and banned all manner of visits then. Prayer meetings were not spared either.
For a short moment, students who had gotten used to the bad culture began cursing Matiang'i. It however soon dawned on them that there was no shortcut. They had to trudge the long way up.
Matiang'i has single-handedly sanitised a system of education that was completely rotten and on its knees.
That is why when the late General Joseph Nkaisery passed on, President Kenyatta turned to Matiang'i to steady the ship of the security docket, albeit in the short term.
Like Judge David Maraga, Fred Matiang'i is a staunch Seventh Day Adventist, a stickler for forthrightness and strict adherence to the truth.
Matiang'i was born in Borabu in Nyamira and is an alma mater of the University of Nairobi and Kenyatta University.