• Exercising my role as the Mt Kenyan region’s spokesperson, an honour bestowed on me by elders from our region, I call upon all leaders from this area to show the rest of the country that our political diversity is subservient to our spirit of unity.
• It is worth mentioning that the heated political season that Kenya and mostly the Mt Kenya region are going through, occasioned by the coming general election of next year, is not what we know as the enduring definition of our region.
I take this opportunity to express the honour and pride that the people of the Mt Kenya region share with the rest of Kenyans, as Kirinyaga county plays host to the national Mashujaa Day celebrations.
As we welcome the guests to Kirinyaga, led by President Uhuru Kenyatta and his chief guest the President of Malawi Lazarus Chakwera, to this auspicious celebration at Wang’uru stadium, I wish to state that this is an opportune time to showcase the unity and peace we share as one Kenyan people.
Exercising my role as the Mt Kenyan region’s spokesperson, an honour bestowed on me by elders from our region, I call upon all leaders from this area to show the rest of the country that our political diversity is subservient to our spirit of unity.
It is worth mentioning that the heated political season that Kenya and mostly the Mt Kenya region are going through, occasioned by the coming general election of next year, is not what we know as the enduring definition of our region.
Mt Kenya is defined by more virtues than the present fray of the political season.
This region is the mainstay of robust economic activities, lush agricultural activities make it the land of milk and honey, the backbone of business and industry form the main pillars of development, and a large wealth of youth population offers the hope for future growth.
My call on the leaders who are embroiled in hectic political competition in the Mt Kenya region, I being among them, is to remember that politics sometimes has the tendency to throw away the baby and the birth water.
We must remember to hold steadfast to what is precious and to all the good things that define us as a bastion of economic development, as we compete to rise to leadership.
The political season will come and go, but while it lasts we should be reminded to exercise caution in both our deeds and word.
President Uhuru Kenyatta just the other day met and reminded the leaders of Kirinyaga County not to infuse destructive politics into the preparation of this noble event of Mashujaa Day.
I borrow the same leaf and echo the same spirit, exhorting my fellow leaders to rise to a level of political maturity that seeks to build and preserve rather than destroy and scatter at the altar of political competition.
I have often said that I espouse the virtues of integrity, responsibility and order.
The latter, Order, is what I am most known by from uttering it for the last two decades as I wield the Speaker’s gavel, and it is what I have the desire to instil back into the management of Kenya’s public affairs, should my fellow citizens bestow on me the leadership of this nation which I am seeking alongside others.
As a holder of public office and a politician, I long to see the day that this nation will rise above the tension and strains that accompany electioneering seasons every five years.
This can become a reality the day we will manage to separate the allure of holding public office from the noble virtue of service to the people.
Service to the people we represent is what defines leaders and distinguishes selfishness from selflessness.
I come not to harangue but to welcome our honourable guests and all Kenyans who will be following this celebration from Kirinyaga County.
Accept my humble invite to all our visitors to Kirinyaga to enjoy the sights and sounds of the diverse vastness of this beautiful region that lies in the shadow of the snow-capped peak of Kirinyaga mountain.
Enjoy the nectar and ambrosia from our lush orchards and eat nyama choma to your fill to give you something to remember Mt Kenya by.
As Shakespeare would say, from our small cheer and great welcome, make a merry feast.
God bless you this Mashujaa Day.
The writer is the Speaker of the National Assembly and spokesman of Mt Kenya region