On Tuesday, August 11, a driver in search for a job accused Nairobi Woman Representative Esther Passaris of ignoring him every time he requested her for a job as her driver.
The man by the moniker Kimtem stated; "Mheshimiwa, you are very 'ignorant' I have been asking you for a driver job but you ignore."
It was his way of requesting for a job that rattled the legislator who explained that she already had a long-serving driver who was far from retirement age.
"You are equally ignorant to think that I would hire a driver when I do not have a vacancy. I have had the same driver Peter Kimani for over 24 years and he is not about to retire," Passaris stated.
Additionally, the woman representative asked the netizen to register into a self-help group of more than 20 drivers with Public Service Vehicle licenses and join the National Government Affirmative Action Fund (NGAAF) Uber project.
A 2019 Kenya census report released on February 21, 2020, showed that 5,341,182 of the 13,777,600 youthful Kenyans were jobless. The report, backed by data from the World Bank, indicated Kenya had the highest number of jobless youth in East Africa.
Despite the fact that 78% of the Kenyan population is below 35 years of age, they are the most affected when it comes to unemployment compared to their counterparts aged above 35.
The Covid-19 pandemic has made the situation more dire, with a section of Kenyans being put on indefinite leave and others retrenched.
President Uhuru Kenyatta on May 1, 2020, acknowledged that more than half a million Kenyans would lose their jobs due to the pandemic.
To cushion the youth, the president introduced the National Hygiene Programme also known as the Kazi Mtaani Initiative, a project similar to former Prime Minister Raila Odinga's Kazi Kwa Vijana initiative during the grand-coalition government.
“I had the opportunity to visit a number of sites where these young people were working and I saw the positive impact they had in terms of improving lives and protecting the environment of those who are the most vulnerable,” Uhuru stated.
