‘We struggled to get even one meal per day!’ Babu Owino Reveals the struggles of a slum dweller

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Embakasi East MP Babu Owino has never been shy to talk about his tough upbringing. But just how tough was it?

Imagine growing up without food, having to deal with police brutality and et cetera.. Babu has gone through it all and come out strong.

According to the first time parliamentarian, his story is that of ‘the rose that grew from concrete.’

In an exclusive interview with The Standard, Babu revealed how his single mother struggled to put food on the table in the slums of Nyalenda in Kisumu.

“I was born to a single mother and like many Kenyans, I grew up in the uncertainty and struggles of slums (Nyalenda in Kisumu.) Life in the ghetto was very tough. My mother did her best with what she had but more often than not, we struggled just to eat at least even once a day.”

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The former SONU boss said that getting send home from school for lack of school fees was normal for him and i f you got sick, ‘the best you could hope for was prayers and God’s healing touch.’

He added that he got used to police harassment at a very young age. In fact he spent the night before his KCSE Biology exams in custody. He had bee busted for selling Chang’aa.

“I was arrested by the police for selling chang’aa and taken to Central Police Station in Kisumu. I was 17 then. I spent the night there and was released in the morning. I went from the police station straight to the exam room.”

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Despite this, he scored a B+ in the subject. Babu attributes this to pure strength of will and determination. ‘I refused to feel sorry for myself that day and realised my destiny was in my hands.’

In his own words, Babu is a man who has overcome significant challenges to make something for himself. He says he thanks God for his blessings every day.

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