Mumias East Member of Parliament (MP) Peter Salasya has praised Murang’a County Governor Irungu Kang’ata for his proactive and impactful efforts in youth empowerment within the county.
In a statement on his X account on Sunday, July 13, 2025, Salasya expressed his gratitude, saying, “I want to thank His Excellency Dr Irungu Kang’ata for taking up the responsibilities of reducing watchmen, maids, and grave diggers in his county.”
He emphasised that true leadership is not about constant complaining but about taking action despite limited resources.
“Leadership is not about complaining throughout, but apart from lamenting as a leader, what have you done in youth empowerment programmes in your country with the limited resources at your disposal?” Salasya challenged, underlining the importance of tangible achievements in addressing youth unemployment and related challenges.
The MP said the initiative is robust to alleviate youth, urging other county bosses to follow his exemplary example.
“All governors must be like Irungu Kang’ata.” He criticised leaders who only complain without delivering solutions, stating bluntly, “A governor complaining of watchmen, maids, and grave diggers but can’t do such, then that is a fool governor who can’t lecture us on youths’ problems or community challenges,” he said.
He expressed his commitment to support the county’s efforts.
“Murang’a, I will be attending as the guest speaker. I love you, Murang’a.” His endorsement sends a strong message to other leaders about the need for focused youth empowerment programmes to tackle unemployment and uplift communities.
Kanga’ta on youth
With a large number of Murang’a youths grappling with alcoholism and joblessness, the county government has launched a programme that will see more than 1,500 youths acquire short-term jobs.
The Ksh115 million programme dubbed Murang’a Youth Service will see youths engaged in cleaning urban centres for three months, receiving a Ksh400 daily stipend.
Out of the money, Ksh100 will go to their parents in a bid to turn them into key motivators of the youths as they perform their duties.
After three months, the youths will then be enrolled in various Technical, Vocational Education and Training Colleges (TVETs) for free technical courses, after which they will each receive Ksh15,000 to fund their start-ups.
He explained that the programme will be implemented annually to empower as many youths as possible.
Kang’ata said the Murang’a Youth Service is structured to ensure 97 per cent of the resources go towards youths’ salaries and tokens, while the rest cover administrative costs.
“The county has only 200 sweepers, but we can’t employ more because of the Public Finance Management Act that limits the number of people a county can employ,” he said.
