There are many opportunities in life – seize them! Daniel Muturi grew up in Nairobi’s Dandora estate. He was raised by a single mother as the sixth born in a family of nine. He admits that while growing up, life was not easy. His sister sacrificed her chance to go to school for his sake. Worse still, one of his elder brothers, frustrated by their family’s predicament, was involved in crime. “Policemen would occasionally come to the house looking for my brother and I would be roughed up- it was difficult” he reminisces. In 1993, after sitting for his KCSE examination, the young man decided to look for ways of supporting his mother- the sole bread-winner of the family. He also sought to get out of the neighbourhood where he had seen idle youth engage in all forms of anti- social behaviour. He joined the National Youth Service the following year where he received paramilitary training. He also pursued a motor- vehicle electrical course and by the time he was discharged in 1997, he had attained the level of corporal. After leaving the service, Muturi joined Securicor Security Services (now G4S Limited) as a guard. Subsequently, he worked for a number of organizations in the same capacity until 2009 when he saw an advertisement in a daily newspaper where the Youth Enterprise Development Fund was conducting interviews for candidates who wanted to be part of the Youth Employment Scheme Abroad (YESA) programme. He made his application and succeeded. With the help of the Youth Enterprise Development Fund, he was linked to an agency that assisted him process his documents and receive the necessary support prior to departure. On arrival in Iraq, he received further training to help him cope with his job which involved providing security to a US Marines’ camp. “We were trained on rules of engagement and anger management among other relevant issues. It was a great experience but the most difficult part was adjusting to the extreme weather conditions,” says Muturi who arrived back into the country in March, 2010. Muturi is grateful for this opportunity and is optimistic about the future. “With my savings, I have been able to purchase a piece of land in Ruai where I plan to build a house,” he says. He is also able to support his family and children. He concludes: “My advice to the youth is that there are many opportunities in life- seize them!
Posted on: Sun, 23 Jun 2013 12:58:43 +0000
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