Moi was Mahatma Gandhi of Kenya, says businessman

“Former President Daniel Torotich arap Moi had a vision for this country; he wanted to ensure every Kenyan got quality education. To me, he was like Mahatma Gandhi of Kenya because he advocated for peace and unity among all Kenyans through education.”

These are the words of Gurvinder Singh Bawa, the managing director of Magic Chemicals Kenya Limited. He is the only son in a family of three and was born in Burma (modern day Myanmar).

“Our family lived between Burma and India, and I had the opportunity to attend Don Bosco Catholic Primary School and later went to Ranchi University in Bihar, where I graduated with a master’s degree in Organic Chemistry,” he says.

He later returned to Kenya in 1980 with a mission to save money to join a post-doctorate programme at the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Bawa learnt entrepreneurial skills very early in life. “Coming from a poor family and being a refugee from Burma, we (our family) had to earn everything we had, whether by hawking radios, bicycles, sewing machines, spare tyres, even bottles of scotch whiskey through cross-border trade,” he says.

In Kenya, Bawa and his sister settled at Kapropita Girls Secondary School, Kabarnet, in Baringo County, where they respectively taught Chemistry and Home Science. Little did they know that fate would connect them with the then president in 1983.

“During the annual Parents Day visit at Kapropita Girls Secondary School, the Head of State was invited. To honour his attendance, we all welcomed him with a four-layer cake, which my sister coincidentally baked. It was inscribed with the Nyayo slogan of ‘peace, love and unity’,” recalls Bawa.

After the ceremony, the president toured the school and witnessed Bawa’s chemistry demonstration in the laboratory. After the demonstration, Bawa got a chance to interact face to face with the president. The president then asked him: “Mwalimu, wewe ni mwananchi ya Kenya (Teacher, are you a Kenyan citizen)?” Bawa replied: “No, your Excellency, but I love Kenya so much!”

This simple gesture of patriotism earned Bawa and his sister Kenyan citizenship. Two weeks after the event, the local mayor’s office asked Bawa to apply for citizenship.

“I believe President Moi and I were able to connect through our passion for education and passing knowledge to students. The chemistry experiment engaged the students intellectually and inspired them to pursue knowledge. Mzee could see the bright future of Kenya through these exceptional students. Mzee loved this country with all his heart and wanted all Kenyans to receive quality education for a brighter future,” he says.

In his condolences to the family of Mzee Moi, Bawa says: “Only a lion can give birth to a lion.”