Nuru Okanga: State House failed to deliver motorbikes to Jacaranda youths
Political commentator and staunch Raila Odinga fan Nuru Okanga has faulted President William Ruto’s empowerment initiative, claiming that youths from Jacaranda were never gifted motorbikes as widely publicised, but were instead used as props to create a public relations spectacle.
Speaking on Saturday, August 16, 2025, after meeting one of the frustrated beneficiaries, Okanga narrated that some of the youths were invited to State House, where they were instructed to pose for photographs while holding keys and standing beside motorbikes, yet none of them received the boda bodas.
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He noted that what followed was a deceptive portrayal to the nation, with images being circulated as evidence of empowerment that, according to him, never happened in reality.
“I am here with this young man, Kamau Wa Kisumu, and he is among the youths who went to the State House. He said that he was given a key and took pictures with a motorbike, but in reality, they were never given the motorbikes,” he said.
He said that after the ceremony at State House, the disappointed youths regrouped at Jacaranda and raised their voices against what they saw as exploitation.
Okanga explained that instead of fulfilling promises, the government used the young people to build a narrative that it was uplifting them, yet nothing tangible was delivered.
He also claimed that motorbikes were later issued to a few groups from other places in order to sustain the illusion that the Jacaranda youths had also benefited.
“After that, they came back, and we went to Jacaranda, where we raised our voices and said that Ruto must stop misusing young people and making unnecessary noise. We said that Ruto must stop doing too much public relations and instead fulfil what he promises,” he said.
Message to leaders
Okanga then criticised President William Ruto for posting on his official Facebook page that the youth empowerment programme had distributed boda bodas, which he dismissed as falsehoods.
He insisted that such actions amounted to deceiving the public and abusing the dignity of the very youths who should be empowered.
“As Bunge la Mwananchi, when we saw this story that someone had come out to say that he was never given a boda boda, Ruto pretended as if he had called Sakaja, and then Sakaja called this young man named Amautavi. When they called, people went from here, and the youths went to the State House. Then youths from Dandora were given motorbikes and accompanied them, so it could be said that the Jacaranda people had been given motorbikes. But as Bunge la Mwananchi, not a single one of us was given a motorbike,” he added.
The outspoken activist also revealed that he had begun receiving threats from individuals warning him to either stop criticising Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja or leave the city.
He declared that he would not be intimidated into silence, stressing that he speaks without fear and will continue to defend the truth.
“Today I have seen people threatening me, saying that either I must leave Nairobi if I do not support Sakaja, or they will come for me. I want to make it clear that I speak without fear.”
Okanga reserved strong praise for Embakasi East Member of Parliament Babu Owino, arguing that he is the only leader who truly deserves respect for the tangible work he has done for young people.
He dismissed content creators who, in his words, were trying to ride on Babu Owino’s image for mileage, pointing out that his own years in activism and political commentary came long before theirs.
“If there is anyone who deserves respect, it is Babu Owino. And to the youths doing content creation, they should understand that I was in this field long before them, and they should not think that creating content about Babu will give them mileage. The kind of work Babu has done, no other leader can match.”
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Steve Ireri
Steve is a senior writer with over four years of experience in digital journalism. His focus is on the showbiz and human interest stories. Emails: [email protected] , [email protected]
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