Kigame: If I become president, students will study by day and work by night
By William Muthama, September 13, 2025Presidential aspirant Reuben Kigame has said that if elected president, he will push for a 24-hour economy where students study during the day and work at night.
Speaking during an interview on a local TV station on Friday, September 12, 2025, Kigame said his vision is to create opportunities for young people to combine education with part-time work in order to ease the burden of unemployment and equip them with practical skills.
Kigame explained that under his leadership, Kenya would run a vibrant economy that never sleeps.
“I want to see a university student go to school during the day and in the evening work at Java or even drive Uber. We need to make this economy work for the people,” he said.
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He argued that the move would help young people earn a living, reduce dependency, and build a culture of self-reliance. He added that running a 24-hour economy would also attract investors and create more industries.
Cutting wasteful projects
The evangelist criticised rampant corruption and ghost projects in government, noting that billions of taxpayers’ money are lost every year.
“You deal with corruption, and that’s how you deal with all these ghost projects, ghost schools, ghost workers, and ghost hospitals, because that’s where the siphoning goes,” he said.
He further highlighted the sugar sector as an example of how cartels undermine local production. According to him, Kenya should not be importing basic items that can be produced locally.
“I hate to see toothpicks come into this country from China. It is criminal,” he added.
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Empowering the youth
Kigame emphasised that his model would prioritise youth employment and industry growth. He said devolution was meant to bring services closer to the people but has been crippled by debt and mismanagement at the county level.
“If I become president, I will make sure we invest in industries, agriculture, and production. We don’t want to import what we can produce here,” he said, adding that empowering students to combine studies with work is part of his broader economic vision.