Monday, 26 October 2015-Here are 9 things you should know about President
Uhuru Kenyatta as he turns 54; what he did in Class 6 after being beaten by
Class 7 pupils tells alot about his up-bringing.
1. Born on October 26, 1961 , he was
given the name Uhuru which means ‘Freedom’ in English by his father, Mzee Jomo
Kenyatta, in anticipation of Kenyas’ upcoming independence.
2. He was conceived in a detentiuon camp
in Maralal, Samburu where Mama Ngina was allowed to visit. He was, however,
born in Gatundu. His father, Mzee Jomo Kenyatta died when Uhuru was in Form
Four.
3. Together with his classmates, Uhuru
was once beaten when in Class 6 by the Class 7 pupils. His classmates exerted
pressure on him to report the matter to his father –then president of Kenya.
But when he called using a ‘reverse call’, his father bluntly told him, “you
must fight your battles”. He then hung up but a crafty Uhuru lied to his
classmates that “help is on the way”. Word spread around which scared the
aggressors into retreating.
4. He attended St. Marys’ School where
his best subject was History. He even received an award from his predecessor,
retired president Mwai Kibaki, for performing exceptionally well in the
subject.
5. After clearing his higher education
at Amherst College in the US, he returned home and secured a job with the Kenya
Commercial Bank, Kipande House branch, along Kenyatta Avenue as a teller.
6. He started a vegetable selling
company called Wilham Company Limited that would fetch them from as far as
Meru. He sold off the company after 10 years “for a fortune”.
7. He has been married to Margaret
Wanjiru Gakuo Kenyatta since 1989. The couple has three children Jaba Kenyatta,
Jomo Kenyatta, Ngina Kenyatta
8. Uhuru joined politics in 1994 and was
mentored by the then Cabinet Minister Kenneth Matiba. He vyied for the Gatundu
South Parliamentary seat once held by his father and lost to Moses Mwihia. He
later got nominated into parliament by KANU and subsequently appointed to the
cabinet as Minister for Local Government. Following this, he was elected as one
of the four national vice-chairmen of KANU in the same year. He was a
presidential candidate in 2002 but got white washed by Mr Kibaki of Narc.
9. In 2007, he made history as the first
leader of official opposition to support the incumbent president for
reelection. Uhuru sat out the election and threw his weight behind Mr Kibaki
who was reelected in the highly disputed election. He won the seat in 2013 with
William Ruto as his deputy.
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