Mombasa youth are castigating the Kenya Ports Authority for discriminating against them when it comes to employment opportunities at the largest government parastatal the Mombasa Port.
The youth, stated that they have not benefited from Mombasa port employment opportunities despite having the required qualifications to execute various duties at the port.
Led by youth activist Dan Owino Aluar, the youth demanded a fair share of employment opportunities at the Mombasa port.
Addressing the Changamwe People’s Forum on Wednesday, Mr Aluar who participate at the Jacaranda People’s Forum in Nairobi, blamed local leaders for ignoring the plights of coastal youth.
Aluar said Mombasa port has been employing—annually, however, people from other parts of the country have benefited from the opportunities totally sidelining the local youth.
“Our former leaders the late Sharif Nassir and the late former Changamwe MP Ramadhan Seif Kajembe strived in ensuring local youth secure employment not only at the Mombasa port but in various government parastatals countrywide,” said Aluar.
He scoffed at the current Mombasa leadership for only fighting for their selfish gains.
“The current leaders have been doing nothing but fighting for their selfish interests,” added the youthful politician.
He appealed to local leaders to champion for the coastal people’s needs and not for their selfish gains.
Selfish leaders
His sentiments were echoed by a political activist from Jomvu Sub county, Naaman Omar, famously known as ‘professor Naaman’, who accused local leaders for forgetting the plights of the coastal youth.
Naaman revealed that the coastal communities have been sidelined including in the very low profile jobs which benefit other people from other parts of the country.
“Whenever we speak we are told that we are too tribal but we know the constitution tells us that we should benefit with at least 70 percent of job opportunities and the rest we consider other professionals from other counties. however, in our situation it is the opposite,” decried Naaman.
Addressing the same issue, Changamwe People’s Forum Deputy Speaker, Samuel Chaka, appealed to President William Ruto to consider coastal people whenever the government offers job opportunities.
Chaka stated that the coastal region has many learned and qualified youth and the issue of coastal people being left out because of their academic status should not appear anywhere when the government employs people.
