 Why 254, imagine? Thank you for staying with us. This is why 254 TV. We are talking about politics. It's a political segment rather. And we are talking of what President Rukenya teseidondazje regarding transforming the youth from owners of wages to owners of capital. What does that really mean? We are demystifying that particular statement politically and economically. Keep sending your comments to all our social media platforms, Y254 channel on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Before we went on a break, we listened to what Honorable Sankok said in his view what the Kazimta initiative should have been in regards to helping the youth. And I want to get your reactions, gentlemen. One guy when Sankok said that money should have been used and he said they need to sit down as leaders. Because they passed that money, yes. And they allowed President Uhuru to go ahead and agree. Yes, this will do. It's Timila's point. And they gave the youth 10 billion shillings for Kazimta initiative. Why, why, why now change the Niantiwa there? Well, yes. I think Sankok has very varied points and arguments. And what he is saying is that when Jubilee came into power, they had a very ambitious plan to change this country, improve the lives of the young people. And if we can remember well that the Jubilee government it was perceived to be a digital government which will look into affairs of the young people. But it has turned out to be the opposite. For example, when you look at the appointments, appointments happen in the appointment. So I think the Jubilee government has let down the youth in a certain extent and practically talking about what he has said on the Big Four agenda, that was a agenda that could employ millions of young people. But in the meantime now the priorities changed from the Big Four to the BBI which we have now. And even at the moment that we have, you know, a lot of millions of Kenyans have been affected by the pandemic. Millions of Kenyans cannot afford to pay the bills, hospital bills. And we remember that we had the universal health care in the Big Four as the period whereby NHL have saying that it cannot cover the millions of Kenyans who affected by the pandemic and other diseases like cancer. At the time, a lot of households are selling lads and other properties so that they can be able to pay the hospital fees for their loved ones. And this is something that needs us to come down, okay needs the leaders to sit down again and ask themselves where they went wrong. For example, when Moshmua talks of employ millions of people, we remember that at the moment we have a lot of technical training institutes. And the technical training institutes, I think that was a good agenda because, you know, at the moment we have a hundred transition from primary to secondary. And then now secondary to university, okay, a lot of people are lost in between there. And now these people are the people who go to the technical training institutes. They are the people now who go to get the technical skills to become competitors, masumaris, to become plumbers and the IT guys. And I think we would continue that trajectory because when you look at the incomes that we get as a country, the foreign exchange, I think the second highest foreign exchange we get as a country are from Kenyans who are working abroad, the foreign… The remittances that we give. So if we could have such huge expertise, they could get employment both in the country working in, you know, in the housing as you say, working in the food security in Garana project and other project. For example, at the moment, over two million Kenyans a day are not sure what they will eat today. So Kenyans at the moment we have food insecure. When you look at the kind of expertise we could have exported and then we could expand now the foreign remittances as a country. So I think our country's trajectory, we were headed to the right direction until we changed the priorities. And I think that is what Sankoka is saying, that leaders need to come and sit down and see where we went wrong and then we can make a few adjustments here and there because they say kosa si kosa. So I think Moshima Sankoka has very varied points. The big four agenda was a very wonderful agenda but in the middle plan we have now another priority called BBI and in the middle of pandemic the leg is still on. Okay, fair enough. Now John, before you weigh in towards as Onarabu Sankok was saying in regards to the Kazimtani initiative, I wanted to listen in to what Presenter said because that's where actually it began in Pumwani where he was speaking to the Boda Boda Riders when he came up with a scheme. That's when the capital under wages narrative began. We want to listen in to what Presenter Rukinyata said in regards to the earners of wages and the Boda Boda actually, actually even with the Tivet he mentioned that, let's listen in. Also encouraged Boda Boda Riders to engage in saving schemes and to work together in order to increase capital base that will enable them expand the businesses that Boda Boda Riders can come together and become owners of capital and holders of major investments. We are encouraging them to engage in saving schemes. This comes in the wake of the launch of the Boda Boda scheme meant to bring together 1.4 million riders with an aggregate contribution of 357 billion shillings a year. Alright, so those are the Boda Boda's. Economically speaking, please expand on capital versus wages. Yeah, so the President's agenda and address on that was actually it was for the Boda Boda Riders and the Boda Boda Riders is just an example of the micro and small enterprises that we have but just as you have realized, they have caught the attention of the President himself because what they get from that business is a huge deal every day. It is actually in terms of billions. But then you come to realize that now they want to, it's like an empowerment program so they want to give them an opportunity not just to be getting the 200 shillings per day and that's the end of it all but they want to add value to the whole production process the whole process and the whole journey of a Boda Boda rider and according to me the saving schemes is very, very much important because you realize that when somebody has a structured way of doing business of undertaking their own endeavors it helps them to be more impactful and not just that but also it opens doors for them because what we are focusing on here is accumulating as much capital as possible at the moment you have capital you have dominance and you have influence you look at this conglomerate of businesses and business groups that we have across the world it's because they have a huge capital base including the banks that you see around and even when we come to Kiyangalia the people who have their well to do one thing that is usually a common denominator is that those guys have a huge capital base and so they call by the president to actually bring the people together it's more of collaboration, synergy and partnerships it's very much important it's like when I am alone I'm not able to do as much as compared to bringing other people who are actually in the same line but then of course there is need for we have seen time and again where those schemes end up to be pyramid schemes so it becomes chaotic because the people who are also managing the money the resources could actually be I don't think it would be any different from what we see in the government money that is meant for the common monainty now is diverted to other platforms and portfolios and in the same regard when these border-border riders have been brought up together I know they have their own circles and the leadership platform but do you think we will be breeding another system of cartels in the market industry? Absolutely I think also to a great extent the government is also looking at a way of eating from these border-border riders remember when you look at the amount of money that comes in through this industry we ask ourselves as an economy what is it that we are getting from it so when you bring in regulation one of it is actually having a structured form of business bringing structures policies and in that you will be able to see that at least the government now introduces you hear there is a certain tax because the government also is looking for an opportunity to actually get in the other thing that you have actually mentioned is about the cartels and that is not far away from reality that is exactly what will be happening it's actually a bomb whose time is yet to tickle down All right because I know these things happen they say it's a critic statement when you see the government interested in something of course there could be more to eat to add on that a little bit just like what I said earlier that the territory this country has been having has been focusing on the job and I think now they have taken some lessons from the economies that are developing for example Indian Bangladesh you have as a government you have also to invest from bottom to top when you see the president meeting the Bada Boda writers those are people who are the top level chain when you see him going to launch I don't know some things in Maniwani from youth with IT and other styles when you see them talking of changes in the tea industry you have also on the talks of guaranteed minimum returns for farmers in tea, coffee, mirah and other styles so I think there's a good trajectory that going forward we should invest more on the people who are at the bottom of the chain going upwards and I think that is something that the deputy president has been saying and I think that's a good idea when you talk to a good number of economists they will tell you this is a good idea because the moment the person at the lower chain is empowered this thing now will trickle up because more money in the pocket he has more spending power alright while it has been mentioned of transforming the young people from earners of wages to earners of capital one of the ways people are asking is how will this be achieved because majority of the young people are not employed and of course when it comes to starting up a business you will need capital but even so why don't we just listen into what president had to say in regards to this particular statement the genesis of it all how he will transform the young people from earners of wages to earners of capital let's listen in Rates of taxation youth empowerment also took center stage with the president denoting his objective to shift the country's young people from being earners of wages to earners of capital leveraging on capacity building we have worked hard to give youth self esteem and a sense of purpose and we have done this because dignity comes from self reliance and a sense of contributing to society if the youth are given a sense of national importance they will own the country and guard it jealously as active shareholder so the youth will be transformed from the estate to having money and you have given as examples of an example being the Boda Boda now how else how else can these young people stop being earners of wages because tuna fanyangabi barua anyway kazi amje goni ki barua how now do I start managing my own capital as in where do I get it if the president says I am being transformed from being an earner of wages to owner of capital where do I start because most of people will be like ah the president had an example of Boda Boda I was thinking of someone in the Jua Kali or maybe someone who you know even where are we how did the president speak to them so like there is a sense as young people we also need to come to understand that rum was not built on a day so lazima to jikazapia we know that yes we want to get there we want to get there at the top we want to drive big cars we want to do all that but then we also need to understand that it's actually a process so that by the end of it all year one you are here year two you are here but of course in the next five years you might not have really done a lot but then you could actually umemek progress that's the term to use here progress is the key and I think as young people we need to come and understand we need to come up and understand that the will needs to come from within as far as the government is doing all that there is also a sense and there is also a part in which we need to come to a point where we know yes this is happening but the will needs to come from within the desire to actually succeed because many times we've had also stories of complaining everyone is complaining but then we also need to ask ourselves to start off how are you going to start off because the start off is an individual question otherwise the government will not come and the 70% of the young people that you have around the country can come and tell you one guy get this $1000 get this $100,000 and start off your business so the will and the drive needs to come from within as an entrepreneur because let me tell you we have had entrepreneurs even these stories that you hear of people who have made it in business people who have made it in the industry it is not that they woke up one day and they found themselves up there no no no no it is a process they started with nothing but they build on what they had what is it that you have you have an environment around you in your estate you can mobilize the problem you have is that everyone wants to work in an office you have a market around you and through that you have a clear business strategy through mentorship, through guidance you can be able to grow in that area and I think that is very clear and that needs to come it needs to sink among the young people that yes we are talking about the government pursuing and creating an enabling environment but the fact will still remain and what is this fact that it is an individual responsibility these billionaires that we see these people who have made it in business politics, entrepreneurship and all that they started somewhere and out of that they were able to grow again and I will ask you what is it that you have whatever you have fair advantage of market and you need to identify a niche you need to identify a gap in the area that you want to operate in perhaps it is clean water why don't you rally together as young people around you around your area and pursue a project because once you have the vision then the resources needs not to become a problem so when you have the vision you need to clearly outline how you want to achieve this vision because you are here and you want to get there so this journey is what we call strategy and now the strategy comes in handy because young people will be able to sit together, discuss and think it's not just about young people meeting and taking Mira and all that it's ok, it could be a hobby but then we are asking ourselves in those small meetings that you have as young people in those jobless corner zones are you hopeless the state of the country we feel helpless we feel hopeless but as an individual what is it that you can do and I think we need to come to those conversations because those conversations are important as far as we are pointing fingers at the government the government will not come and bring food on your table you are the one to actually pursue we have had success stories my friends around my circles they have done tremendous projects in their communities but only getting something but also they are creating impact exactly I want to echo his words that here that we need to seize the moment as the youth and do something and for example as an article I wrote in the staff and I wrote that article after doing a heavy research that the next billionaires will come from agribusiness that is what you are saying as a youth we must get out of our comfort zones and try and do this tear some marks dirty works because for example at the moment we have these common markets that are being opened and Kenya has I think a city coming up with Africa there is something an agreement and that Africa over one billion you also have another one with China UK so I think this product like Carlos Paltre generally agribusiness helping a lot of young people and I have success stories I can point but also now speaking on unhonest perspective the government has done a little bit for example this year you are ranked number 3 on east of starting business for example starting a business name that in two days company in seven days there is access to funds there is wezo fund youth enterprise fund there is the biashara fund that is in the program now but now the problem that the government the problem the youth face is for example now starting the business itself you need a lot of licenses left right and center that is very very expensive number 2 also for example for those young people who have decided to start companies which are quite a number and they are trading with the government doing tenders and other procurement opportunities the issue of pending bills has really affected a good number of them and you see that at the moment because most of these funds I read that most of these funds are loans so the moment the government keeps you for five or three years without paying you you see that now even the bank will come to auction you these are some of the things that the government must improve but also as youth let us see the moment and do something actually I want to engage you on that there are policies there could be more policies to better this but going by the president's word do you think we have political will to see this actually his time is almost actually in Asia too but now do we have political will to see what the president says or what the president dreams of the young people comes to be by passing these policies that will provide favorable opportunities unfavorable competition for young people to do business I think yes maybe the president means well but the people in offices have no good will for example we look at now the issue of the public procurement and asset disposal act it clearly states that the tenders in each and every government MDs the ministerial department agencies should give at least 30% 30% of the tenders or procurement opportunities to the young people but what is happening is that one has not been the arrest when you look at a treasury report of last year I think there is a small number of youth benefited and the other number goes to the old people and number two just as my brother talked to cartels in the industry you'll see that an example is the COVID billionaire you'll see that there came something that was procurement that was an agile kind of thing but you'll see now that this big man go to register a company for example I am used to register a company because I am a youth but they are the real owners so for example if anything happens the state will come for me looking for money but now the big people took the money so I have nothing so I also think that the industry has a lot of corruption and cartels in general there is no good will so we need to implement these policies and have a good will and I think if that is achieved we have a good vision and I think this country will be tremendous you spoke over young people understanding the times and it's a personal responsibility other than the attitude that we have kuchagua kaji mimi siwizi finiaivi nani aoshiwa magari what else is an impediment to the young people embracing the times and doing something to bring food on the table and maybe making their lives better so basically I think apart from you manada kuchagua kaji what I would say is actually that the environment is actually not also favorable so that ideally the work of the government is to to create an enabling environment the work of different stakeholders who come to play because like I said stakeholder engagement in any sector is very important so that you are telling young people and graduates go and try and do something self-employment but you don't start from nowhere but you need to have a structured way that's the thing that I'm saying so stakeholder engagement comes into play so that these industry players they are supporting you is actually supposed to be doing is to create an enabling environment for the young people and that's what we are saying that has not been created for a period of time like now you see look at where the government is insisting on issues of procurement laws 30% been given to the young people women and people living in the disabilities that is far fetched I mean it's not something that is happening whatever is happening is actually young people are atikun comes and tells young people you're going to register business in your name but I'm actually the one to deliver those standards and all that and I think the enabling environment comes into play but also the other thing which I would actually emphasize is the issue of parenting parenting comes in hand because we don't learn these things at school to begin with alright I want you to hold on that thought we take a very short break then when we come back we expand on that and we look at the reactions of different people then we'll be winding up we'll be taking a very short break please stay with us we are continuing with this conversation of transforming young people from anas of wages to owners of capital thank you for staying with us you're watching OY254 TV we are on matters politics transforming young people from anas of wages to owners of capital I'm speaking to John Wangaichia can you interfere with youth council and John J. Muati Executive Director of Transcending Africa Leadership Foundation and before we went on that break John you are telling us it also boils down to parenting yes the impenement talking about what could be the limiting factor to ensuring that you have youth who are actually aggressive in terms of being owners of capital and that is parenting because I realize that where we come from we come from a point where as we go out to the whole world to the world we face a culture shock because what we are told by our parents go to school earn a good grade get into a good college get into a good university earn a good degree join the labour force so the culture that has been there has been largely contributed by the parenting by our parents and also the society and I think it's a high time that we embrace when we were growing up and you hear somebody wants to be a musician somebody wants to be a DJ and we assume that that is not something that can actually talk about something that is decent and something that is decent is like you the way you are with a good time and people now have respect to that unfortunately somebody who is you compare perhaps the salary that you get and somebody who is actually doing some welding and somebody who is you know mizigo something that you don't need a degree to actually do what you need is the right attitude so parenting has contributed to poor and negative attitudes towards some occupations so you are naturally predisposed negatively against some occupation so I think it's a high time even as we bring up our children parents and leaders they need to instill these things that's how the competence-based curriculum comes in handy because even as you go to school you've actually been told that farming farming is as good as somebody who is sitting in the office because we need to feed our nation we need to feed those people who are actually going to the office I want us to finish up with listening to some of the reactions of members of parliament from Migori and KJ from I think it's the Great South what they felt about the state of nation addressed by president to Kenyatta what they made of it and ask here what did we gather other from the particular statement that was made if we could listen into what they had to say President has talked about very many issues but I would say that he has very eloquently stated where the problem is as Kenyans we know what maladies are ailing us the question now coming out of this pitch is whether we are offering the right medicine for the maladies that have been diagnosed because he has talked about all the maladies that Kenya is suffering from up to and including the new maladies of covid that has hit us the question is are we applying the right sebum the right medicine the right panacea for these maladies for us to be a stable economy then we need to be more producers than consumers I think that is a powerful message that I would like to re echo to all Kenyans that it is high time we stopped thinking that we are developing or we are economically stable by importing things from elsewhere to consume it is better we produce I ever crooked our production system is we would rather produce 2. in the terms of job creation is calling upon all the youth with talents and skills and whatever they can employ to start small and micro enterprises which the government will be willing to support today 70% of our citizens are youth youthful and in a clear attempt doing the four point agenda of the president to ensure that the youth now become employers not just employees or people who live from hand to mouth they will have funds through government intervention to enable them now to be able to grow and run their own business and manufacture businesses and with the support of the government one of the key things that I as a representative of the people from Lamu county is that the president have noted the whole nation that Lamu port is progressing very well the first bud is done and the second two bud are almost complete and for us Lamu people and the cost of people this is one of the greatest milestone achievement that we will remain to to remember president ame tu shawishi ame tu umpatifadali kama nezekana tutumie pesos as CDF kwa kisha kama tu jengama shule uru di shule januari wakuna mahali pakuanda kusoma kukususengu asa mimi ambay na nikonashida yama shule na desks mimi na kisha komba nita jenga nikoshu na nita jenga shule zingine tatu kovili kwasasa na shule moja tuia sekundari we know our kids have lost one year what is it that the president is going to do to ensure those traumatized children out there who have not been at home for one year I am going to recover their one year what strategies because if you don't then recover one year it means generations to come will be behind shendu for one year by one year so we president must come out with the strategies or now we are going to recover like during the moist era you remember there was a double intake when university students back clock came because of 82 kup so those are some of the reactions from the members of parliament of what they felt regarding to the presidential address now weighing in from what they said we had a member from parliament from one from Nairobi and Migori but particularly from Migori Pamela she said production which John you kind of mentioned into now being the production system not employing being employed but employing someone else your reactions to this as we wind up there is need for goodwill I think for quite some time we've had a country where our leaders sorry that we call them leaders because some of them are just great debuters who have turned to be leaders they get in there promising us of something but they continue with the narrative the same narrative that has been there a lawmaker saying that this is what needs to be happening in this country they are crying out to who who is there to actually what is it that we can do as a country saying that we need to be more a producing country more than a consuming nation we need to ask ourselves who needs to be doing what and I feel to a great extent it's like asking a lawmaker asking what is my responsibility nima jaribu kila kitu nima jaribu kila kitu and me as a citizen what is my responsibility as far as being a producing country is concerned I need to be producing right we had farmers from wasengishu producing milk maize they have thousands of sacks in the warehouse where actually maize is being stored they are waiting upon the government to actually purchase this in through the serial boats unfortunately what happens they have long overdues in terms of what they are supposed to be paid but time and again we have seen maize being imported from other countries including Mexico maize finding its way through the port through our entry points in our country through the border points coming all from other countries in the world who have surpluses but we cannot even take care of a local farmer in our country and yet we are saying that we want to be more of a producing country that farmer has spent time in the farm they have bought fertilizers they have employed in the endeavor to become an honor of capital they have employed, they have even employed the locals to be part and parcel of the production process but then what do they need in the end they have so much maize sacks of maize they don't know where to take it from because where they are supposed to be taking it there is already a surplus it is coming from importation who are these people who are importing the lawmakers the one who has that influence is the one that is eating its own farm we are eating our own people and I feel as a country we need to clearly have demarcations on who needs to be doing what and I call upon the institutions that are actually supposed to be acting the interest of the common knowledge the point we come to a point where a lawmaker has advantage to supply things to the government yet a young person somewhere has put energy into farming into a particular endeavor but the efforts are not rewarded I feel that is very critical when it comes to issues of having a surplus a country which is actually relying on production more than importation and consumption okay, Wangai do you think we have become a man's society yes, I think to some extent we are there and what my brother is saying that the lawmaker is crying to move that is something that yes, I agree with that and when you look at a a philosopher a particular man was called John Locke he talked to a social contract during social contract during the sense that the citizens surrender some of their rights to the government and next the government now should provide for example the security you are not allowed to own a gun so upon the government to give security to you and other stuff so what I am saying at the moment we are not doing good and again I emphasize on our inverted high rack even what my brother is saying someone somewhere has a surplus of maize but someone from the top is allowed to import so we need to invert back the hierarchy so that now we concentrate those in the bottom going out because if we empower something from the bottom that farmer if the person who will farm in the country will be able to attain food security the person at the bottom if the person will be able to produce these things that we import and therefore as a country will be able to sustain ourselves when you talk of the things that Waishimua was talking about those were the four things that the president talked about changing youth from being the wage earners to owners of capital having Kenya from a consumption feed kind of a system to a production kind of a system having people poor housing it is so bad that in this 21st century some people are living in very very bad housing kind of a program whereby a country has 3 trillion budget this is now what I am saying that the priority this country has should shift and start with the people at the bottom going to those at the top and another thing he talked about was which is food secure and good health so these are things that if the president is sincere with these things just let him implement the big four the big four affordable housing the big four food security things of manufacturing and universal healthcare if we are able to achieve these things then the other things that we talk about will be rearrest so at the moment what I can say is with the ravaging pandemic as to the economic recovery protection of the citizens the other things we are not in a hurry we will amend the constitution later let us first work with the things that are affecting the common monainty alright thank you so much gentlemen for coming and finding time to speak to our audience and trying to demystify what this particular statement meant to the young people out there I trust you have learnt something from this particular discussion speaking to John Wangaichia Kenya Interfaith Youth Council and John J. Muati Executive Director Transcending Africa Leadership Foundation in Bakum thank you so much for being part of us this morning have yourself a very good day I will be seeing you again in the evening until then enjoy the rest of our program my name is Dereva Hilawe good morning