President William Ruto on Friday, November 22, urged graduates of the National Defence Univerity of Kenya to work jointly with other graduates across the country to examine the place of society in the upbringing of children.
Speaking during the graduation ceremony of the National Defence Univerity in Lanet, Nairobi County, the Head of State challenged the graduates to similarly identify the place of parents and religion in raising a morally upright generation.
Addressing the congregation, President Ruto took a swipe at the popular hit song "Sipangwingwi," questioning the role of such songs in raising a responsible society.
In particular, the Head of State questioned the moral and ethical significance of some words portrayed by the song such as "Maisha ni yangu, shughulika na yako," loosely translated as "My life is up to me, concentrate on yours."
"You now hear of incidences of Maisha ni yangu, shughulika an yako, where does that leave family, society, community, religion, tradition and culture?" Ruto questioned.
"What is the place of the region in bringing up a morally upright, patriotic citizenry, so that we can better understand the breakdown that leads to young people committing femicide," he added.
According to Ruto, such terms as used in the song, greatly hamper efforts to foster unity and peaceful coexistence among family members and the community.
Ruto's comments on the song appeared contradictory as it was one of the songs heavily used by him during his campaigns ahead of the 2022 polls.
During the electioneering period, Ruto adopted the song as his campaign slogan, basing it around his Bottom-Up Agenda. The song featured prominent Gengetone artists including X-Ray and Trio Mio.
However, the song was later flagged by the National Cohesion and Integration Centre (NCIC) on the grounds that it used hateful language that promoted violence.
"We know death and life are the power of the tongue, we have classified the term mostly used by Kenyan politicians to provoke violence among communities of diverse political viewpoints," noted NCIC boss Samuel Kobia at the time.
In September 2023, the president mourned the Sipangwingwi producer, Byron Muhando Kivisi, terming him as talented. He further recalled their interaction at his Karen residence and lauded his works of art.
"Deeply saddened by the death of music producer and artist Byron Muhando Kivisi. Byron was first introduced to me by music sensation Xray during a music recording session of the hit song Sipangwingwi at the Deputy President's residence in Karen.
"I recall with fondness his calm and collected demeanour, but more importantly his immense talent that made him an acclaimed music producer. It is disheartening that we have lost Byron at a prime age. We are comforted by the fact that his works of art will live on," wrote the President at the time.
