When Jubilee hit the campaign trail after merging TNA and URP, the biggest promise was that Kenyan youths would never be the same again.
The youths, according to the promises, would be empowered to be self-reliant and become economically productive.
In the manifesto headlined: Transforming Kenya; Securing Kenya’s Prosperity 2013-2017, the coalition partners noted that youth unemployment was a big challenge and promised to give solutions which included re-engineering education where the coalition government would establish Institutes of Technology in every ward to empower youth with effective and relevant skills to service a modern economy.
Acquisition of basic vocational skills, according to the manifesto, would be offered free of charge at these institutions.
The coalition would also rationalise remuneration and recognition of graduates from technical institutions to put a premium on technical education and training by emphasising its importance to economic development and wealth creation.
This is however not true today as is evident in the construction of the SGR for instance. Even the most menial of jobs which would be done by locals is being done by the expat Chinese community. This, as happened in Narok, was the reason the youths in the county beat up some workers. Locals were not getting jobs they deserved.
The manifesto promised to allocate 2.5% of national revenue annually towards establishing a Youth Enterprise Capital/Fund designed along the CDF model to enable youth access interest-free business financing either individually or in groups without the requirement of traditional collateral.
Information in the public domain shows that the Youth Fund has been one of the cash cows enriching only a few while millions of deserving youths cannot access the funds. Bureaucracy and nepotism, the godfather syndrome have been some of the reasons a majority of youths has not been able to access the funds.
The manifesto also promised to enhance youth specific affirmative action on government procurement to 25% “to mainstream the participation of youth-run enterprises in economic development”. This, as we know, is good on paper but the implementation is wanting.
It is public knowledge that this procurement requirement has been hijacked by well-connected politicians including greedy MCAs who have made it their pet project. Most of these ward reps have to receive kickbacks to allow tendering outside the county assemblies or they have connections with those offering the services. Kiambu County is a good example.
The UhuRuto manifesto also promised to develop and promote a policy on internship (on the job training) for all college students requiring practical training-with built in incentives for industry actors.
The presidency has started an internship programme but we are yet to know who the beneficiaries are and how they are remunerated-if at all.
The National Youth Service (NYS) has been in the limelight for a long time over irregular payments to shadowy figures for services which were expensive to the taxpayer but of little or no value to the country. This youth project was hijacked by people who have pocketed millions leaving the youths in a worse off state than they were in the coalition government.
On youth empowerment, the coalition would also establish innovation centres to support the emerging generation of highly creative Kenyans. So far, there is a loud silence and the promises have been thrown to the back burner.
Jubilee promised to save the youths but from what is on the ground, this was a lofty promise to just get the youths hooked and vote for them.
UhuRuto has failed the youths. The promise has failed.
This was a lie!