Kabando wa Kabando

Kabando wa Kabando is a vocal Kenyan politician. He represented the Mukurweini Constituency in the National Assembly of Kenya for two terms having been elected for the first time in the 2007 Kenyan general election|2007 general election under the Safina Party.

Mr Kabando was on the national platform of politics since he joined parliament in 2007. His first party, the Safina Party was openly supporting the reelection of former president Mwai Kibaki in 2007. In 2013 Mr Kabando joined The National Alliance party which was led by President Uhuru Kenyatta.

During the 2017 General Election in Kenya, Kabando contested the Jubilee Party's nomination to vie for the parliamentary seat in Mukurweini Constituency but he controversially lost the bid and left the party to contest the parliamentary seat on an independent ticket but was again controversially unsuccessful.

Although Kabando left the president's Jubilee Party, he continued to campaign for president Uhuru's reelection and was among the senior strategists spearheading Uhuru's campaign. In October 2017 he spearheaded a caucus calling for national dialogue to heal the sharply divided country. In June 2018 he again mobilized prominent national leaders to support Building Bridges to National Unity, an initiative of President Kenyatta and Opposition Leader Raila Odinga.

Kabando first came to national light when he was elected as chairman of the Students Organization of Nairobi University (SONU) in 1992 by an overwhelming majority of students. Although at the time campus politics was highly tribal, Kabando was able to unite all ethnic groups together to vote for him. At around that time he changed his name to Kabando wa Kabando to conceal his ethnicity at the period since the then president was the Chancellor to the University and he was very interested in campus leadership.

Other than student leadership and parliament, Mr Kabando has served in the Nairobi City Water Board as Chairman water management authority 2004-7. He doubled as the Chiefs Executive of Kenya Hotelkeepers Association 2003-7. Nationally he is known for defending President Uhuru and supporting his party's agendas in parliament. He was also at the forefront in supporting the 2010 referendum that saw the inauguration of the new Constitution of Kenya. In 2015 and again in 2016, he initiated bipartisan parliamentary initiatives for dialogue on electoral, economic and constitutional reforms. Both efforts were successful and were legislated into national policy and programs.

Kabando wa Kabando is described as a compassionate and eloquent leader with insights and foresight on social trends. As a former student Leader, Kabando has been an agitator for reforms that positively affect the common Mwananchi by calling leaders to account for their time in Office. Kabando is on record as citing chapter six of Kenya's Constitution on Integrity as his pet subject.

Kabando's track record indicate a keen focus on provision of Bursary funds for education to the less fortunate of his Constituency. He also oversaw several other development projects in the Constituency including the building of Mukurweini Technical Training Institute and electricity and water and electricity connections in the constituency.

Mr Kabando continues to be a respected figure in national politics due to his open support for Uhuru Kenyatta. He is also close to opposition leader Raila Odinga . He is reputed for agitating national reconciliation and unity. He remains vocal on national issues mostly through his Twitter handle and national media commentaries.

Mr. Kabando’s first degree from University of Nairobi was in Political Science. He graduated in 1994. He thereafter graduated with Masters in Public Policy from State University of New York in 2001. In 2008, he received a Distinguished Alumnus award from SUNYSB.

With Kenya again on the threshold of a defining succession politics and suggestions of constitutional reforms, it will be interesting to see where and how Mr. Kabando-Wa-Kabando roles.

1999-2001: State University of New York, USA - Masters in Public Policy & Management University of Nairobi: Bachelor of Arts in Political Science International Training in Corporate Governance and Leadership