Oliver Mathenge
9 July 2009
opinion
Nairobi — His trademark "Good morning ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the fresh ministry," was always Kinuthia Murugu's opening statement at Youth Affairs functions.
And true to his words, Mr Murugu, who died on Thursday from injuries sustained in a carjacking, spent much of his time shaping the agenda of the country's youth under the ministry created in 2003.
"We ignore the youth at our own peril," he often warned.
Mr Murugu has been the only accounting officer at the ministry since its establishment.
It is under his guidance that the Youth Enterprise Development Fund, which has more than doubled from an initial Sh1 billion, was established. More than Sh1.7 billion has been disbursed to individual youths and youth groups as loans.
The ministry has also embarked on an ambitious plan to revamp youth polytechnics after years of neglect.
On various occasions, the PS explained that the aim was to turn one polytechnic in every constituency into a centre of excellence.
Another highlight of his tenure is the Kazi kwa Vijana programme, which aims to create at least 300,000 jobs by the end of the year. It is coordinated by the Prime Minister's office.
Following the 2008 post-election violence, the PS spearheaded another ambitious programme aimed at reconciling communities.
This was the Youth Exchange Programme where youth switch areas with colleagues from another region for at least three weeks.
The programme has seen youth from Coast, Central, Rift Valley, Eastern and Nyanza provinces interact.
Some of these areas were hotspots in the post-election violence.
Condolence messages from the top leadership summed up the role played by Mr Murugu in shaping the youth agenda.
President Kibaki, Prime Minister Raila Odinga and Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka described his death as an unfortunate loss of a visionary leader.
"The late Kinuthia Murugu tirelessly helped to pursue an agenda dear to my heart, that of youth development. His absence will especially be greatly felt by the young people who had found in him a true friend and mentor," the Head of State said.
The PM said: "At one of our NESC meetings, he presented a short video that left every participant in no doubt that we are sitting on a time bomb if we don't address the issue of youth unemployment."
The VP described Mr Murugu as a brilliant and visionary administrator with a big role in Vision 2030's implementation.
Mr Murugu, an alumnus of Starehe Boys' Centre in Nairobi, has a long and varied engagement with youth organisations and issues.
He served in a voluntary capacity as an executive committee member of the President's Award Scheme under which he is also a Gold Award holder.
Before his appointment to the Youth ministry, Mr Murugu was the regional director of the World Scout Bureau based at the Africa Regional Office in Nairobi and had the responsibility of developing and expanding scouting in 46 countries in Africa.
On leaving Starehe, Mr Murugu joined the University of Nairobi where he graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce degree in Business Administration. He was also a member of the UK Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply.
After university, he joined the Kenya Navy where, after a career that included command at sea and United Nations peacekeeping duties in Yugoslavia, he retired in 1996 with the rank of major.
He was awarded the Head of State Commendation medal for professional excellence while in the Navy.
Later he worked for Maersk Sealand, a leading global shipping line.
Outside the office, the PS enjoyed swimming, playing squash and chess, and writing. His collection of poems, Feelings -- Just Feelings was published in 2003.
The was always jovial Mr Murugu leaves behind a wife and four sons.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2009 The Nation. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
