Embakasi East MP Babu Owino has criticised the government over its timing of the National Youth Opportunities Towards Advancement (NYOTA) programme launch, days after the Independent Electoral and Boundary Commission unveiled the nationwide continuous voter registration exercise.

Speaking to a local radio station on Wednesday, October 10, 2025, Owino claimed that the NYOTA programme, a government entrepreneurship initiative targeting the youth, was a ploy by the government to sidetrack them from registering as voters.

The MP read mischief in the timing of the grant programme, saying it was meant to divide the youth’s attention from the actual exercise of registering as voters.

“IEBC and the government are attempting to suppress the registration process. Shortly after they launched the continuous voter registration, the government similarly launched that NYOTA thing. They know if youth register in large numbers, the Wantam calls will increase, and they are not encouraging it,” he claimed.

The MP cautioned the youth not to be distracted and instead focus on the real goal of registering as a voter, as the only way to change their lives.

Elsewhere, Kwale leaders warn national officers over laxity in the Nyota Youth Project implementation.

Keep focus

He further challenged Kenyans to consider changing their voting destinations to Nairobi, assuring them of a proper representation if elected the next governor of the city.

“People should stop searching for that Nyota. Let Kenyans look for the Nyota in voter registration. If you are in rural towns, come register in Nairobi; you will get the best representation. If you are in Mombasa, board the SGR and come register in Nairobi; you will find the best leadership here,” he added.

His remarks come after President William Ruto announced that the financial empowerment programme targets at least one million young people.

“We are having a conversation around youth entrepreneurship… We have raised Ksh5 billion together with the World Bank to give 100,000 youth in Kenya money to scale up their businesses,” Ruto said.

The programme’s mapping exercise officially kicked off across the country on Monday, October 6, 2025, with the head of state affirming his mission to recruit up to one million youths aged 18 to 29 for the empowerment initiative.

“The target is to have one million young people benefit; we are starting with one hundred thousand. By the end of October, we will begin the process of releasing the Ksh5 billion, making sure that in every ward in Kenya we are able to identify at least 70 young people between the ages of 18 and 29 who are doing business,” Ruto revealed.