 Back to why in the morning thank you for staying with us in case you're just joining us well you're still on time for the fast conversation of the day and today we're all about WCW and on strength of a woman we have an exceptional lady with us in leadership so we took about Hajani in leadership she's called Tabitha Rachel Tabitha Mutune who's our national youth political leader Karibusana Rachel thank you so much glad to have you with us thanks for having me all right so we want to know a little bit about uh who you are and what you do before we get into you know your whole journey your whole story okay uh so my name is Rachel Tabitha Mutune Mutune is our name from Kitui amakamba okay so my political journey began in campus when i i realized i am a leader you know leadership is from god you can feel there is something in you that is kind of special so there were so many challenges in campus i graduated last here with my first degree uh so i realized that these challenges need to be addressed and some challenges are way beyond the school administration they need some hapahand so i i said why why why don't i seek uh national platform for me to behave to address these issues way better the issues that are up past the the university level that need the government hand why don't i do that so i started and that's how i began i vied for kuso kuso is kenya university students organization for the deputy presidency and i i took it i won so your kuso is deputy president till now okay yes so i i i started national politics so i joined a odium party the odium party uh working with the odium women league we did campaign for party registration where we were getting people to register to be party members now with that i i i realized they could still do more so i was vying for mca but i stopped i stopped i stopped to work for the party but now while working for the party it's when our right now amolo dinga saw me in the campaign and then he had my speech and he realized they could do more so he took me in in his presidential campaign secretariat where i was now doing campaign for him doing communications and youth mobilization struck youth politics so i got nominated by the odium party as an mca uh in kitu county that flopped badly because uh odium never got in city new company so when you don't when they don't our party doesn't get uh seats no one wins with odium there then they cannot nominate anyone but uh i said it's okay because i was haeming at state house you all knew we were going to state house so i let it go and focused on state house that also didn't happen that also flopped that also flopped now we are here but we learned a lot i did okay okay you said let me take you back a bit you said there's a time you try to buy for mca and then you stopped yeah and then now odium nominated you later on is it the same here just the same here like i i did the strategy i i came up with my campaign team and everything to go for mca were you vying uh were you trying to buy under a party or independent yeah and a party odium but then when i check the dynamics and uh hey i tried to study the word and i realized no it i can see as i could give it to you need i need to learn something i need to learn more even if i try this i'll fail okay and you know sometimes you might buy to be noticed but i was already known so i was like even if i buy what is the point what is the what is the point and at the end of the day but you still went ahead and uh you know got nominated by odium yeah you can be nominated actually when you don't buy when you buy you cannot be nominated so it's either you buy you fail or you get the nomination but now the women are trying to come up to come together and see how they can do the nominations after women buy because you find someone went to buy they used a lot of resources and then you know no there is not that opportunity again for nomination it has gone with other people but to see this woman has tried a lot and she has failed now what's the reward at least what's what's there for her so they don't give up yeah at least to do that later now okay yeah to consider the women who have at least tried all right so where did your journey till where you are now after the nomination because i had cut your shorts a bit so tell us more mm-hmm where i am now so i got a job in parliament anyway that is where i am now so okay but i'm still in leadership like mine is not work i don't care i say i don't care whether i win one day or not i just want to make the change in the society i still want to to do what i feel i was called to do so that legacy i just want it so much but the job is still there to sustain me yeah yeah okay so the job is just that to sustain you but you are in leadership that's where your calling is yeah so tell us talk to us about student leadership because you started in school before you finished and became the deputy president of you know kuso so how was it in student leadership it used to be nice before we joined the campus because everybody could feel the student politics it was actually without uh one million plus someone would not win any seats there's times of sonu when we used to hear about sonu then we learned about it a bit later it was politics in such a way that a student leader at that time could win with masses and trans that would translate to masses at national level but it changed all of a sudden because of duale bill that was introduced by the hempi to to cap this chaotic they used to say they say that students are wrong they have been chaotic so is to was introduced to to manage them okay the the times of babu we know it was so little yeah but now you see the i think they were doing it to to manage them but it trickled down now to us it's affecting us we are now campaigning silence we were campaigning like you you are scared yeah because uh no activism so now it's different it's different you have to go through a college system where it's a group of student leaders who are supposed to decide whether you win or not so i know that the system is you vote uh through delegates yeah through the delegate system now wow and you see delegates could be influenced by other external powers whether the administration or just one rich opponent of yours money corruption you know it's habit becoming so it's the corruption is there in the university so we don't really have like uh transparent elections even happening there so this bill was totally not okay that was yeah we've tried to petition in parliament to get it with the drawing at least we've gotten audience with the national assembly pushing through our leaders like babu and other leaders who care about comedy so much but it's still there it's still there and if it continues to be there then we will have to get other ways or we will have to mentor students on silent not just silent politics like we are now you have to sell your manifesto get uh be more strategic on how to win but that is not what you want we want uh election system that that when you come out here it's what you find happening because the university politics is not like it's not what is happening yeah in the national yes so what's the point we're not mentoring anyone okay that someone comes here and a pig want to show okay well it wasn't like this see your system delegates so now and then you now joining becoming the deputy president of kuso how is it what are you doing for me uh the kuso the work of kuso is to represent the students at national level yeah and to protect them yeah and to protect them so we work with colleges and universities it's an umbrella for all of all those schools campuses and colleges where we get to know what is happening where in which university or college what is happening and what is needed from our capacity is this something that we can go and talk to the administration to get sorted or is this something that we need government to intervene on behalf of students because um things that administration can do among of the challenges students are going through our insecurity in school which uh missing max delayed graduation what else so what else some challenges are so many but then so how you are addressing such challenges like missing max because that is very common in the university how is that being addressed for that you you first get in touch with the school president because there are leaders already there you get to know why the issue is there and why it has not been sorted yet because you can't just go into a school and you are going direct to the administration as who even if you have a title you have to to follow the order so we normally go through the student leaders you get to know what is happening whom now give them the pressure to go to the administration to ensure that is sorted yeah but now the challenges that need government intervention we now use our own connections because we build connections in networks to see how that could be addressed okay and have you had issues that have been addressed by the government that you've taken uh that you took up to the government and they addressed them help as usual help they listen and they try something how have they helped in matters help actually not only help but also on matters help they they speed up the this this bansim of the help yeah at least they do it and also earlier on uh the president our current president William Ruto gave us audience with the the committee for education reforms where we went and sat with them and told them all those problems so many of them they are about that is something yeah they took not and then they took feedback to him to see how the education system could be made better so i feel at national level we're being listened you're being listened yeah although not everything is being done but at least it's it's it's okay something there's some progress a bit of it yeah there is and now you being in the student leadership and politics and being out here at least trying out uh in being an mca though it flopped and uh and what not how what is the difference between those two and you said that there's a difference because of the different systems that are there the delegate system and the difference in the national politics so how was it for you for me i had to adjust had to adjust because you know once a leader always a leader some things it will just be a work over for you i had to realize that oku inje the game is a bit tough and adjust to read because uh sometimes politics are chaotic especially the the politics outside and you see with national politics we are moving from country sorry county from county to county not country from county to county word word uh consistency consistency 20 so it was and then with sometimes we are on caravans sometimes we are on speeding vehicles sometimes the crowd is not welcoming it's you know some place to go the crowd is welcoming it's not hostile so i had to adjust that that's what i can say i had to adjust and learn from others what they are doing the people have been there what they are doing get more mentors at least i have so many mentors women and men so learn from them also how they do it how they used to do it and also use the platforms that have gotten to go and learn so many of them we have organizations like oslo center christian ksc see uh that strain young women leadership okay yeah so use i maximize every opportunity yeah and uh what type of you you've said you have mentors how is it getting into national was it made easier because now you're the deputy president of kuso for someone who maybe doesn't have connections or you know i use out there that wants to join politics but doesn't know how but they have the you know they're driving them how do you get to where you are what does it take to get to start at least to have your foot in the national politics uh they have to work on themselves first because no one will notice you when you are not there they have to be seen they have to be seen like uh politics is visibility you have to be seen so they have to start doing something whether it's doing charity in their areas whether it's doing student politics whether it's just waking up and vying to fail because you could vying to fail it's not yeah yeah i fail in politics as a success politics will never leave you so much behind politics will always leave you somewhere it's a job that no one will suck you so i can tell them to start something drink something at least so around the word let people know them yeah we can change drivers kuna pia the silent politics of it where someone could be involved in uh some decision making in uh in in deciding something in in driving change where they don't have to speak because we have people who uh doesn't have the grace don't have the grace of speaking in public or talking too much but they have their brain that can do something for this country they could also be part of politics but now what matters is what you're doing when and how people can feel it you have to be felt so let them do something to be felt so the the impact has to be felt with the society and how is it being a woman in politics because i know there's a lot of challenges just being a woman you know in the society but now in politics how hot is it um the society is trying to adjust to accommodate women uh you know the woman of long ago like 50 years back from now was a woman whose place was kitchen yeah bedroom or just maternity room while making the baby and it's done and everything was peaceful and the man was now to come out here uh gets money or get life or provide for their family but now the woman of today has gotten education and we can do nothing about it so when someone gets education as a woman i get education i get to know the world the society does not expect me also to to just remain that woman of kitchen and bedroom i have to also had my skills for the betterment of the the country or the wherever i'm going to work as much as men feel like we are not doing it well like we are running away now from our duties that make us women how they put it uh we still trying to to manage it because once a woman always a woman you cannot run away from that you have to see how you can do leadership you can balance that that the if you are married your husband if you want to be married how to maintain being a woman feminine or feminity of yourself but still be leadership yeah and leadership does not sit well with men up to date leadership for women doesn't sit well for women doesn't sit so well it hasn't yet sat well with men they are still not accepting it can happen because it's not a competition it's not for us it knows it's not a competition we are just coming to compliment them you know when you were created from the bible that we read that was written by whoever wrote it we see that a woman was created to assist a man yeah but now i took wambiwa which kind of assistance maybe it was not just kitchen it would be maybe it could be other assistance like out here yeah because everybody is born differently we are born with our own capacities maybe we could do more so of the challenges trying to fit in in the society that is patriarchal it's meant for men as men put it because no one ever put it like that we are also having challenges on how to get the resources to go for campaigns because it needs a lot of money it needs money politics goes with the money it's only one percent that can do it without money but politics need money and you see for women we even when our fathers are giving land they might not give us girls because we expect it to get married yeah and i don't think your husband also has to give you his cards of land to go and sell to campaign and when also men we are working women we are still at home thinking whether to go and work so women are trying to to build their their pockets financially yeah yeah another challenge is um the ability to communicate communication how is it how is it a challenge communication you might find that uh when a woman is saying something men would make noise sometimes they would look at you first and uh magnify your whole body and tell you first go and dress up properly okay so they objectify the exact that is the word they objectify you and you know when there is no clear like there is no respect even you know in politics you meet different people and you don't expect everybody to be sober some are very not sober but they are smart so they might tell you know when you manamke shut up what are you telling us first of all get married you are not married what are you doing here you you you haven't proven trust that you can keep a home how do you expect us to trust you with the whole world or consistency take get us a husband and to find that maybe you are not yet to get married or even the husband is not there even maybe you didn't even plan to get one because it's an option yeah it's an option actually you had that meme that was still as a man to well yeah you see it's a yeah it's not a joke it's not something to laugh over but it's it's laughable because women are realizing um the roles are not clear anymore the roles that we are like a man to provide and a woman to be back at home are no longer clear a woman is providing even so the man is wondering if the woman is providing what is my duty and you find that some men shrink instead of um supporting the women who are in now either leadership corporate world working whatever space they are they feel insecure they feel insecure like this woman is getting exposure it's handing more than me instead of support they shrink they become also bitter defend that men are suffering mental health because they don't understand how to handle this woman of today and it's not so hard just understand how to handle how women are the easiest things to handle so how should they should she be handled now that you're talking about it and you're a woman in that space yeah we we no matter how how far we go we remain women nothing can change yeah as long as you are here as a journalist you are handing your six digit salary you're looking beautiful so many people are watching you don't forget that you are a woman how we don't forget that you are a woman at the end of the day we have to be led whether or not i become the president today i have to be led i must have someone so we have to blend in and balance okay so yeah create that kabalance yeah but now i've mentioned three challenges they are way so many of them okay and okay now the you've mentioned challenges of being a woman have you faced a challenge of being a young woman because now you're also very young you just finished school and you've been in leadership but people still perceive you as too young maybe and being a woman is is it like a double challenge of some sort um people would feel you are overambitious you know yeah they say overambition kill the man they feel that you're so overambitious it's like you're confused you don't know what you're doing okay those are some people you know just everywhere there are there is it's positivity negativity and not everybody that will not welcome you so there are people who feel we are so overambitious and our time will come they they say we are the the leaders of tomorrow it's okay but you know for the tomorrow to be there we must be there today today yes we must have the track record so that acceptance it's a challenge you might even try to get our financial help from someone or from institution and they look at you and they feel like no you know we can't we can't we can't you wait also with men some would see a wife a potential wife to me some would see a girlfriend but to see when you have a drive in you you're looking very far you're not looking at here it's okay to get to be married but not just like that because i came for help now you want to marry me it won't work of course i'll just go home without what i came for yeah because that cannot happen um the challenge for being young woman is the platform competing with the women who have been there getting the platform it's a big challenge they have been there already they have they have established their roots they they know where when how and what to get they know the tricks yeah and they are known you just come in to compete with them you know even don't like yourself that person has experience of course you might win over them but it's not that i work in the park okay so you have to have the heart for it all right so before we come to a close on this because time has really flown by i want to know you you said you want to leave a legacy and you're still in leadership despite you working for parliament now so what legacy do you want to leave what how do you want to serve your people we have the late magoha and he's left a great impact in the society in traditional cbc he's done so many reforms in the education sector so that's something that he'll be remembered with what is it that you want to be remembered with in your leadership that you're you're still in and you're getting into um i'm really doing a lot of things let me start there i'm doing girl child mentorship i'm doing boy child mentorship i have so many youth organizations where give them the platform to grow politically i have also groups where we we talk about in pregnancy we go from place to place addressing this issue to protect the girl child as she's growing so that she can make it to this level so i want to be remembered as a woman who uh brought women leadership into more platforms or how do i put this i want to be remembered as a woman who championed for women leadership and it went on successfully because if i protect the generation that is coming of women they realize themselves uh when we go to the village and make sure the girl is not pregnant before she's 18 years she's before she's before she's realized herself in her dreams that's woman that young woman over there will remember that it were it not for tabida maybe i would not have been gone to school i would not have attained my goals achieved more other women were my age mates they'll remember if it wasn't for this lady tabida maybe i would have realized what is in me because i try to tell them that you can do more it is not what you feel we can do much can be felt uh we have to acknowledge women leadership it's doing well there are women before us who championed for it successfully so we thank them so much we are enjoying the privilege of talking because of them wow but now it's upon us to do more i want to be remembered as someone who brought change to the society by ensuring more women came out here to be in leadership and governance wow amazing that's amazing tabida and we wish you all the best and we want to see you very at that the top representing us as women maybe you have a what to say as we close for uh you know a woman leader that is out there that is your camera you can also share your social handles the one who are already established or all of them anyway or all of them well two women leaders out here or what i can tell you is um believe in yourself uh wind because you're supposed to win get an opportunity because you deserve it do not go through short cuts because short cuts will not lead you anywhere um have the drive of a purpose because if you have a purpose nothing outshines the purpose the purpose will lead you to something and live up to your full potential well my social handles uh it's Rachel tabida facebook twitter hhe rachael tabida instagram hhe Rachel tabida wow amazing thank you very much Tabitha for coming and sharing your story with us encouraging someone out there thank you so much all right so that has been Rachel Tabitha Mutune who's a national youth political leader she says have the drive have the passion and just keep in you know have the purpose and don't give up basically that's what she is saying so thank you for staying around and watching this particular interview we have more coming your way on wcw there's a question that we asked you in our social media and we want you to participate in that to know Lisa matters relationship wise if that's some people have multiple partners something around that so talk to us with the hashtag wcw or why in the morning at y244 my channel my personal handle is at Stephanie Ayeta we take a short break we'll be right back there we have it thank you very much