Humans of Thika: Meet Carol Wanjugu.
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| Carol Wanjugu |
1. Did you grow up in Thika?
No I was not raised in Thika as a matter of fact I was born and brought up in Laikipia County in the slopes of Mt. Kenya, went to school in Nyeri County and come to Thika in 2010 to start my internship and since then I fell in love with this industrial town.
2. What do you love about Thika?
Well my job entails interacting with people from all walks of life, and I can say without fear of any contradiction Thika people are a supportive, friendly and welcoming bunch, I also happen to be a member of St. Patrick’s Catholic Church Youth and my interaction with my peers goes ahead to support this. I find the entertainment spots in this town vibrant and affordable as compared to my home town it offers me a chance to unwind with my friends after a long week of working hard. There is less pollution be it noise or environment within Thika Town in comparison to other neighbouring cities such as Nairobi. Finally accommodation is quite affordable and safe I can attest to that because where I reside there is good rapport within the security agencies and the landlord.
3. What would love to change about Thika?
The architectural space within Thika needs to be upgraded some old buildings should be taken down to accommodate new ones or go a step ahead and paint them afresh because some buildings give the town an old look. I would also love to change the Old Bus Terminus to an ultra-modern look all these rickety mabati structures surrounding the buses and matatus don’t do it for me. As a peer educator I am saddened by the fact that many people find it difficult to access drugs in some government run health facilities either because they are told to buy them from private pharmacies out there, how I wish that could change we come up with a way of distributing the drugs to those who are greatly affected for free or at a subsidized rate. Our roads are also in a pathetic state especially the roads leading to various estates it is becoming quite hectic for motorists, cyclists, pedestrians alike to dash through without traffic incidents been reported. The street urchins are also on the rise how I wish deliberate efforts of rehabilitating them were taken and also the government to see that they have been moved away from the streets.
4.As a Community Health Worker how is it
working in Thika? Is Thika open to what you do, what can be done to improve it?
Bearing in mind that I work in
the health sector I would proudly say that working in Thika has been quite phenomenal the support that the various
stakeholders such as the Thika Level V management team have offered our organization
is quite immense. Offering services such as counselling and testing presents a
challenge of getting people to come out in large numbers to get tested, I
therefore feel it would be prudent if initiatives such public baraza’s, mobile
VCT can be rolled that way they common man would feel confident and come out
and get tested and counselled in a bid to reduce the infection rate. After all
different areas have different health concerns what affects people in Gachagi
would not be the same in say Kiandutu.
5.Let’s say your long lost friend wants to
visit you in Thika, what three things would you say to them to ensure that they
consider Thika as a travel destination?
I’d recommend
that they must 14 Falls located somewhere in the slopes of Kilimambogo to me they are the 10th wonder of the
World, as we approach various streets within Thika I would definitely ask them
to have a taste of “Mayai Ngonja” and “Chipo
Mwitu” these road side snacks are not only available but affordable for a small
amount of Ksh 20 you will go home full. Of course the world famous pineapples
haha they had to name a mall after them you know and lastly check out the various
entertainment spots within Thika.
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