Kenya I Care team continues to reach out to young people. The Initiatives of Change (IofC) Subukia and Nakuru teams have been relentless in their efforts to reach out to young people and inspire change. In churches, youth groups, learning institutions….wherever there are young people; you will find someone from Subukia with the message of caring for Kenya.  

Recently, a group of them addressed the issue of leadership and good governance. The team included Joshua Peacock and Debora Drew, students from Georgetown university, USA who are interns with IofC Kenya. 

The question regarding ‘What kind of a leader would you want to have?’ was discussed. The majority of the participants said they wanted a leader who is free of corruption, tribalism and free of vices. Sam Muiruri, one of the participants, talked about the process of change needing to begin with oneself and eventually having an impact on the whole world. He talked of his dream project which came to him after visiting Nigeria for the Harambee Africa training last year. This was to start using plastic bottles as building materials - earning him the nickname Mr. Plastic. So far he has made several structures and the project is geared for success.   

The team also visited the Subukia Polytechnic and addressed the students on the theme of peace. ‘There is a need for us to discuss issues related to peace especially at this time when there are various security threats and alerts in the country.’ Zacharia Muturi, a part time volunteer with Initiatives of Change said as he kicked off the discussion. With tensions in the country due to illegal groups and sects igniting conflict, plus the forthcoming Kenyan general election, it was clear to all that the issue of peace should be given priority.  

One of the team members posed a question to the students on what they understand of peace. After a detailed discussion, they all came to the conclusion that it starts with oneself since if you have no peace in your heart there is no way you can give it to others. We all agreed that it was important to look for inner strength to help us gather wisdom and direction to deal with issues when they emerge in order to retain inner and outer peace. 

Peter Macharia, a student who played a big part in bringing sanity to the institution during a time of unrest last year, in which several students were expelled and some teachers fired, shared how his experience with IofC had helped him. ‘I discovered that I was over-reacting to minor offences and decided to seek guidance. That is why I always invite you here (to the institution) so that you can assist us in viewing things differently.’ 

It was clear that the students have a desire to see and bring change in their lives and in this country. 

Report by John Njoroge