We, residents of Muthurwa gathered under the umbrella of Bunge La Mwananchi, wish to draw the nation¢s spotlight to the Muthurwa slums boxing ring where residents are determined to deliver a total knock out (TKO) on a local bank that has grabbed our community social hall.

Two years ago, when they took over our social hall, the local government cheated us that they needed temporarily to use facility as a store during the construction of Muthurwa hawkers market.

At the inauguration of the market, President Kibaki and Local Government assured us that the social hall would remain a community facility.

However, we have since confirmed from the City Council of Nairobi that the social hall is earmarked for a banking hall by Equity bank that is neither listening to nor caring for Kenyans though it claims to be the Mwananchi¢s bank.

The construction of Muthurwa market was heralded as a project to empower Muthurwa residents in their economic development efforts. However, the reality that we know is the double tragedy that we have suffered.

Firstly, a road was constructed right through the middle of our houses and disrupted even our access to those bad toilets that we use. Two children have lost their lives from matatu accident on that road and everyday our children continue to face that the danger of being ran over by a matatu.

Secondly, because of the businessmen in the market and a bank that is crazy for money, we are now losing our social hall because business people must bank!

We must strongly underscore the importance of this facility to area residents and Kenyans in general:

1. The social hall has earned this country over 21 boxing gold medals and produced celebrated boxers all of whom began their careers, trained and grew to fame in boxing at Muthurwa Social Hall. These include:
a) Mr. Stephen Musyoka, the first African world champion amateur,
b) Mr. Bilal Snr, a silver medalist in 1984
c) Mr. Robert Wangila, the first African Gold medalist in 1988
d) Mr. Bilal Suleiman Jnr, a Gold medalist in the All African Games and who is also representing Kenya in the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
e) Mr. Martin Oduor, 2006 Gold medalist junior category.
f) Mr. Daniel Shisia and Mr. David Munyasia winners of the Africa Military Boxing championship.

2. There are currently 34 budding boxers in training who need that social hall as they pursue their dream of one day becoming gold medalist, Robert Wangila.

3. For us Muthurwa¢s young people, the social hall is our symbol of hope and a launching pad in our struggle to escape from the hopelessness of joblessness and poverty; escape from the indignity of bad housing, no water, no electricity and no toilets; and escape from risks of ugly sanitation.

4. For us Muthurwa residents the social hall is a valued facility for weddings, funerals, meetings and has been so since the 1960’s.

In the light of above, we make the following demands:

1. That the Equity bank involved notes and respects the wishes and interests of Muthurwa residents and immediately and permanently shelves its plans to convert the social hall into a banking hall.

2. That if Equity bank is genuinely a listening and caring bank, the bank consults extensively with Muthurwa residents and jointly arrives at a compromise where the community will retain the continued use of the social facility and the bank provides banking services to the community as well as includes the development of social hall and its surroundings as part of its corporate social responsibility.

3. That the Ministry of Sports, Ministry of Youth Affairs and Youth Development Fund should pool theirs and community resources to assist the residents in developing this sporting facility in order to nurture local sporting talent and to create job opportunities for the area¢s young people.

4. That the Minister of Local Government and the President, who are keenly aware of our plight and the importance of the social hall to this community, should keep their promises and take urgent action to ensure that we do not lose the social hall.

5. That in line with the assurance given to Muthurwa resident women during the construction of the market, the women be given an opportunity to earn a living from the market by being employed to sweep Muthurwa market.

George Nyongesa

– – –
Date: Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:50:03 -0700 (PDT)
From: George Nyongesa
Subject: {Disarmed} Muthurwa forum on reclaiming community social hall from Equity Bank!