Kibaki urged to offer guidance to Jubilee leadership

Former President Mwai Kibaki. He was on Friday urged to offer leadership guidance to the Jubilee administration by Senators Moses Wetang'ula and Boni Khalwale. Mr Kibaki did not respond to the calls. PHOTO | FILE

What you need to know:

  • Senators Wetang'ula and Khalwale said the country was headed to the wrong direction due to poor leadership.
  • They said Cord's push for a referendum was to to give Kenyans a chance to determine how the country should be governed.
  • Mr Kibaki did not respond to the calls.
  • Mr Wetang'ula said it was wrong to continue converting middle level colleges.

Former President Mwai Kibaki was on Friday asked to offer guidance to the Jubilee leadership on how to reconcile the country and tackle insecurity.

Bungoma Senator Moses Wetang'ula and his Kakamega counterpart Boni Khalwale said the country was headed to the wrong direction due to what they claimed was poor leadership from the Jubilee administration.

Speaking during the eighth graduation ceremony at the Masinde Muliro University, Mr Wetang'ula and Mr Khalwale said insecurity, corruption and tribalism had reached alarming levels and should be addressed urgently.

They said the Coalition for Reforms and Democracy (Cord) was pushing for a referendum to give Kenyans a chance to determine how the country should be governed.

“Our push for a referendum has nothing to do with the tyranny of numbers in the National Assembly. It has everything to do with the people of Kenya, the National Assembly has very little to do with it,” said Mr Wetang'ula.

NO RESPONSE

But in his speech, Mr Kibaki, who is the Chancellor of Masinde Muliro University, did not respond to the calls that he engages Jubilee on matters of good governance.

Instead the former President commended the management of the institution for the tremendous growth it had achieved and the expansion of teaching and research facilities.

Mr Kibaki said the university had the potential to drive the country’s dream of industrialisation based on the institution’s rigorous tradition in technological research and innovation.

“Research activities at Masinde Muliro University which include the stingless bees and the medicinal mushrooms are being translated into reality,” said Mr Kibaki.

He said public universities should strike a balance between expansion of infrastructure and up-scaling human capital to ensure they produce graduates with relevant skills for a competitive job market.

MID-LEVEL COLLEGES

Mr Wetangula said it was wrong to continue converting middle level colleges into universities since the trend was killing the training of graduates with technical skills in the country.

Education Cabinet Secretary Prof Jacob Kaimenyi, in a speech read on his behalf, said the university will receive equipment for applied science, engineering and technology.

“We have set aside Sh384 million to facilitate improvement at the institution including installation of video conferencing facilities,” said Mr Kaimenyi.

Kakamega Deputy Governor Philip Kutima and 10 MPs among them Ababu Namwamba (Budalang'i) Paul Otuoma (Funyula) David Eseli (Tongaren) and Joseph Lokuton (Laisamis) attended the graduation in which 1704 students were conferred with degrees and awarded diplomas.