Raila Odinga diehard Nuru Okanga sits for KCPE at age 32
Nuru Okanga, a Raila Odinga fan joined other candidates sitting for the 2023 KCPE examination at Mumias Muslim Primary School in Kakamega County as a private candidate.
What you need to know:
- Mr Okanga has been in the political spotlight during anti-government demonstrations organised by the Azimio la Umoja-One Kenya coalition when he made scathing remarks about President William Ruto and his administration.
- On Monday, Mr Okanga joined other candidates sitting for the examination at Mumias Muslim Primary School in Kakamega County as a private candidate.
Opposition leader Raila Odinga's diehard fan and 'barking dog', Nuru Okanga, is among the 1.43 million candidates sitting for the last batch of the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) exam.
This year's KCPE exam has attracted the highest number of candidates after the government allowed unregistered candidates to sit for the exam, which ends the 8-4-4 education system.
Mr Okanga has been in the political spotlight during anti-government demonstrations organised by the Azimio la Umoja-One Kenya coalition when he made scathing remarks about President William Ruto and his administration.
On Monday, Mr Okanga joined other candidates sitting for the examination at Mumias Muslim Primary School in Kakamega County as a private candidate. He says his intention is to obtain a primary school certificate that will make it easier for him to contest for the Kholera County Assembly seat in Matungu in 2027.
He said Roots Party leader George Wajackoyah had hired a teacher in Nairobi who had trained and prepared him well for the exams.
The 32-year-old also thanked Mr Wajackoyah for providing him with a tutor to prepare him for the exams.
“I am well prepared for this exam. My expectation is to score at least 250 out of the possible 500 marks. This will give me a better chance to join secondary school in my journey to pursue the education ladder, because I want to be a big person in this country in the coming days,” said Mr Okanga.
He said his intention in politics is to start by contesting the Kholera County seat in 2027 and climb the political ladder to become the President of Kenya in the future.
"I know it is a requirement that for one to be cleared by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) for the MCA seat, you must have a KCPE certificate. That is why I am here," he said.
Mr Okanga dropped out of Form Three in 2007 after the death of his father and went to live with his aunt in Nairobi.
He would enter politics as a die-hard loyalist of ODM leader Raila Odinga and was a vocal participant in Mr Odinga's rallies. On March 25, 2023, he was arrested along with another crowd mobiliser, Calvin Gaucho, for what their lawyer Danstan Omar said were illegal Azimio protests.
He revealed his ambitions to progress in education further as he prepares himself for his political ambitions.
“I will not stop at this level (KCPE). I want to progress to secondary school and ensure I join university because in Kenya for one to be a president, you must have a degree. That is where my focus is. Even if I will be 70 years, I must contest for the presidency,” he explained.
He said he was making every aspect of his life and educational progress public so that when he contests a political seat, there would be no doubt about how he acquired his academic qualifications.
The primary school exams began on Monday and are expected to end on Wednesday, November 1, 2023.
