Mount Kenya University hosted the ‘Sikika Youth Fest’ today to address mental health issues among youth.
The ‘Sikika, Tubonge, Tusifiche’ event was held at the Mwai Kibaki Convention Centre and drew hundreds of MKU students and general youth from Thika and its environs.
Pastor Dorcas Rigathi, Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua’s wife, spoke at the event, focusing most of her speech on the plight of the boy child and sharing her mental health journey with attendees.
Mrs Rigathi admitted to having suicidal thoughts herself and that she once attempted to end her own life by breaking security protocol at former President Daniel Moi’s event.
“My mother was in distress. I was in the university and I was contemplating suicide. Marriage was the last thing on my mind. At a visit to Kabarnet Gardens, I ran to President Moi because I wanted his security to shoot me dead. Thankfully, the President lent me an ear, ” she said.
Mrs. Rigathi, who has previously stated her stance on the plight of the boy child, reiterated the message as she rallied for young men and urged society to treat them with dignity.
“I will speak about the boy child until the end. As a mother, I must speak about it. Sometimes, because of the way the world’s culture is, we assume men are wired for anything and we don’t care about the boy,” she said.
“The boy child always has to stand up for a broken home and that’s why most of them are drug addicts with mental health issues.”Â
