It is a heart-wrenching paradox that defines Kenya’s unemployment crisis: a hand trained to save lives is now banging the side of a matatu, calling out for passengers in Ruiru.

Kelvin, a 2014 graduate of the Kenya Medical Training College (KMTC), has become the face of a "wasted generation." His descent from a promising Clinical Medicine and Surgery graduate to a casual labourer highlights the systemic rot leaving thousands of medics destitute and desperate. His mother, Wanjiru Mburu, says her son is slowly sinking into the abyss of depression.

A Dream Deferred

"He was always brilliant," Wanjiru recalls, holding back tears. [...](asc_slot://start-slot-3)Kelvin scored a solid B-plain in his KCSE in 2010. He chased his dream to KMTC Nyeri, graduating with a diploma that was supposed to be his ticket to the middle class. He completed his internship at the prestigious Kenyatta National Hospital in 2015 and obtained his practicing license in 2017.

Then, the silence began. Years of applications, thousands of shillings spent on cyber cafes and envelopes, and not a single permanent job offer. The system that trained him had no use for him.

• The Reality: With county governments freezing hiring and the private sector saturated, thousands of trained medics are jobless.
• The Mental Toll: "He is intelligent but withdrawn," his mother says. "I apply for jobs for him online without telling him because he has given up hope."
• The Plea: The family is appealing to the Kiambu County Government or any well-wisher to give Kelvin a chance to hold a stethoscope again, not a jagged coin.

The "Hustler" Trap

Kelvin's story is not unique. It is the story of the engineer selling mitumba in Gikomba, and the teacher riding a boda boda in Kisii. But there is a specific tragedy in a medical talent going to waste while public hospitals grapple with staff shortages. "It is depressing," Kelvin told reporters, his voice barely a whisper.

As he navigates the chaos of the matatu stage, one wonders how many lives Kelvin could have saved in the last 11 years. His situation is not just a personal tragedy; it is a national indictment.