Nairobi Countdown
As we count down 77 days to the WA U20 Championships, Kenya celebrates Madaraka Day on 1st June, 2021. Madaraka Day (also known as “internal self-rule” or “self-government day”) is a national holiday in Kenya observed on June 1st each year. After being a British colony since 1920, Kenya achieved internal self-rule on this day in 1963. The Swahili term madaraka means “authority, dominating power.” Madaraka Day is observed as a national holiday. The general public has the day off, and most schools and businesses are closed.
Kenyans will congregate in their hundreds to commemorate Madaraka Day at the location chosen for the formal celebration each year, this year being Kisumu City. Military parades, as well as singing and dancing, are part of the festivities. The President’s Madaraka Day address is the most important component of the ceremony. The speech frequently refers to the country’s struggle for freedom as well as other relevant problems that have an impact on the country. The national anthem is then sung to conclude the festivities.
History of Madaraka Day:
German colonists were among the first Europeans to arrive in Kenya. The Imperial British East Africa Company took control of the territory in 1890, and Kenya was a British East Africa protectorate from 1895 until 1920, when it became a British crown colony. Land disputes were prevalent, leading to the Kikuyu people’s Mau Mau revolt in 1952, which effectively declared Kenya a state of emergency for the following seven years.
The Kenya African National Union, a political party led by Mzee Jomo Kenyatta, an ethnic Kikuyu, became the first government after the first direct elections in 1957. Kenya became a self-governing country on June 1, 1963, when the Late Mzee Jomo Kenyatta became the first prime minister. Kenya gained complete independence from British administration on December 12th, 1963, which is celebrated as Jamhuri Day every year. This is one of the three national holidays established by Article 8 of Kenya’s 2010 Constitution.
