A street boy identified only as George has touched the hearts of Kenyans on social media with his melodious voice.
In a video shared online by Citizen TV news anchor Lulu Hassan, the young man performs what seems like an original composition, detailing his life struggles.
"I was born in the streets 20 years ago, my mother rejected me, my father disowned me. I have my friends who I call my brothers, oh Lord have mercy on me because I know one day I will be out of here.
"Lord bless me with everything so that I may be able to help my friends who have now become my family," he sings before switching to 'Create In Me a New Heart' by Donnie McClurkin.
The news anchor posted the boy's video on her social media platforms lauded the journalists who had captured the video.
"When journalists are out for a different story and they bump into talent. His name is George.
"He has lived in the streets for 9 years. May his singing talent open doors for him," a jovial Lulu wrote on Instagram.
Lulu's followers took to the comment section to shower praises on George, whom they stated had an exceptional voice.
"May God answer you for that's a great prayer you making to Him," Wamaitha stated.
"Imagine what he'd do with a mic in his hands," Asutsa weighed in.
"Wooow may God make a way for him," Musyoki added.
"May God bless him with his heart desires together with his friends and family," Billy Odhiambo commented.
Why this matters:
As the video continues to make rounds on social media and Kenyans hurriedly type away their amazement at the young man seemingly unperturbed by his miserable life in the streets, it also inadvertently raises the less addressed question of the welfare of street families.
Former Nairobi Governor Evans Kidero's administration will be famously remembered for ordering the rounding up of street families ahead of the much-anticipated visit of Pope Francis to Kenya in November 2015.
Two years later in April 2017, Kidero would reveal that the city county government routinely rounded up street families to "send them back home" every three months.
He would further complain that over 12,000 street children sent back home in December 2016 alone, had already returned to the city.
There are four rehabilitation centres run by the County Government of Nairobi in Shauri Moyo, Joseph Kang’ethe, Kayole and Bahati. These should take care of approximately 60,000 street children in Nairobi with past numbers showing that there are about 300,000 street children in Kenya.
While a few street children have been rescued and managed to even earn national fame, notably Ghetto Radio presenter James Kang'ethe aka Bonoko and gospel musician, Alex Apoko, better known by his stage name, Ringtone, majority of street children continue to bear the brunt of an unstructured children services system that is poorly-funded and, dishearteningly, riddled with corruption as one NTV exposé found.
Below is the video:
