By Hon. Fatuma Ibrahim Ali
Growing up in Wajir, I often felt like a guest in my own country – a distant observer of a national identity I couldn’t quite touch. On every Madaraka Day, we would huddle around radios, listening to the echoes of celebrations in very far corners of Kenya, never daring to imagine that one day, the national stage would be set here in Wajir, North Eastern Kenya. We were told that independence meant the end of “us versus them,” a new dawn of equality for all Kenyans. But for the people of North Eastern, that promise remained elusive. Instead, we endured decades of systemic neglect, the trauma of state-led violence, and a culture of suspicion that forced us to constantly prove our “Kenyaness.” We were frequently labelled “insurgents” and treated as outsiders, even as we remained deeply rooted in our Kenyaness. Today, that narrative is being dismantled.
Since the inception of the 2010 Constitution of Kenya, only nine counties have hosted Madaraka Day celebrations. Wajir County in North Eastern Kenya will make history as the 10th county to host this historic celebration. Wajir is no longer a peripheral observer of our nation’s celebrations; we have become a stakeholder in Kenya’s history. This moment represents the arrival of the great equalizer, a long-overdue declaration and demystification that the freedom won by all our forefathers belongs as much to the North as it does to the rest of the country.
Today, a 10,000-seater stadium stands complete, built by the same military that once guarded the borders against us, and a new State Lodge now rises – a place where a president can finally sleep among the citizens of North Eastern Kenya. This is a profound, if complex, sign of reconciliation and recognition of citizens’ rights. For decades, the security uniform was a symbol of public scare, a harsh reminder of the ‘insurgent’ labels and the trauma of the many massacres of North Eastern Kenya, particularly the 1984 Wagalla Massacre. To see the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) lead the construction of these facilities is a shocking but necessary shift. It creates a new dialogue: we are moving from an era where the state’s presence was measured by checkpoints to one where it is measured by infrastructure and civic access. By building here, the military and the state are signalling a transition from keepers of the perimeter to partners in our development. We are finally being invited into the Kenyan house, and we are being given the keys to our own part of it.
Across Wajir town, the signs of this transformation are impossible to miss. Beyond the Ksh 900 million investment in the new stadium, featuring a full-sized football pitch, an eight-lane athletics track, and modern spectator amenities, we have seen a rapid upgrading of critical road networks, the installation of a series of solar street lights, and the expansion of Wajir International Airport. For decades, our potential remained locked behind poor connectivity. Today, these projects are the arteries of a new, 24-hour economy. We are no longer defined by what we lack, but by the potential we are finally being empowered to unlock.
As the inaugural Woman Representative for Wajir, I spent my tenure advocating for the foundational promise of devolution – the idea that resources and dignity should be brought closer to the people. Devolution was our first real attempt to equalize the playing field, decentralizing power and resources to finally give Wajir County a voice in its own development. Hosting this national celebration is a significant scale-up of that vision. This milestone is a testament to an evolving political maturity led by His Excellency President William Samoei Ruto, clearly reflecting a bipartisan consensus between the two broad-based political parties that finally recognize the importance of inclusivity and devolving national celebrations from Nairobi to counties. North Eastern Kenya is now not just a region to be visited during campaign seasons or crises, but a vital engine of our national economy. It is the transition from being mere participants in our own governance to becoming central architects of the national agenda. By sitting at the table in our own capital, we are moving beyond the struggle for basic allocation and toward a new era of national influence, where North Eastern is no longer a place that requires special pleading, but a region that contributes to national development.
Yet, we remain under no illusions. This stadium and these roads should not be the end of our journey; they are the starting blocks. As we look beyond the pageantry of June 1st, we call upon the national government to ensure this momentum is sustained. Partner with us – and with Wajir’s neighbours in Garissa, Mandera, Isiolo, Marsabit and Turkana – so that we may tackle the perennial menace of drought, access to reliable electricity, education, and water security with the same urgency used to build this stadium. This must be the beginning of a deliberate, region-wide investment in sustainable infrastructure and economic initiatives that finally empower our pastoralist communities.
To our fellow Kenyans across the republic, Wajir and North Eastern are no longer the distant frontiers you read about in headlines. We are now a vibrant heartland – a land of untapped potential, unique culture, and resilient people. We invite you to come and see for yourselves the new face of the North. We are proud to host the nation, and we are even more eager to prove that when the North is given its rightful place at the table, all of Kenya rises. Today, we are not just guests; we are finally, unequivocally, home.
The writer is a member of the COIN-10 Committee; former Wajir Woman Representative (2013–2017) and former East Africa Legislative Assembly (EALA) MP
