Nyeri senator Wahome Wamatinga has come out to reveal the story behind his name 'Wamatinga'.
Speaking on Tuesday, the senator said he got his name from his technical institute that trained people on the operation and maintenance of heavy equipment.
He said the birth of the one company led him to open other branches making him widely known and hence he acquired the name Wamatinga.
Wamatinga said having spent 20 years in Germany made him realise the technical skills gap in Kenya.
He said parents take their children to university to get degrees without caring whether they are employable skills.
"I started up a company and then I found out that I could not get skilled labour. I realised that there was quite a very huge demand so I started a technical institute called the Institute of Applied Technology that did not ask you what qualification you had as long as you are 18 years old with an Identification Card," he said.
"When the super highway was being constructed, you saw some young ladies driving very heavy pieces of machinery, most of them are my trainees."
The senator revealed that he has managed to take many men and women to work in Israel and Qatar when it was building a stadium.
"My work became like a landmark and I thought to myself that this is a good idea I opened other branches in Karatina and Nakuru and people started referring to me as Wahome Wa Matinga and it became a name that I somehow like.
The Senator said the name left a large footprint in his life and considers that his huge achievement because from his work other industries are coming up.
He said when he started the company, he was discouraged by friends not to pursue it.
