For 85 agonizing hours, Nicholas Wepukhulu clung to the steel frame of a billboard above the bustling streets of Eldoret. He was not there to advertise a product, but to advertise his own desperation. "Nimefika mwisho" (I have reached the end), he declared, turning a metal gantry into a stage for Kenya’s unemployment tragedy.

His solitary protest is a harrowing symbol of the economic malaise gripping the nation. Wepukhulu, a father of three, did not climb for adrenaline; he climbed because the ground below offered him nothing but rejection letters and hungry mouths he could not feed. His actions force us to confront an uncomfortable truth: in a country where connections outweigh qualifications, sometimes a man must risk his life just to be seen.

The 85-Hour Vigil

Wepukhulu ascended the structure at 1:00 AM on Monday, wrapped in warm clothes and armed with nothing but determination. Below him, the City of Champions went about its business, largely indifferent to the human drama unfolding in the sky. He had hoped his extreme measure would attract the attention of the region’s powerful politicians—governors, MPs, perhaps even the President. Instead, he got curious onlookers and the cold night wind.

• The Silent Elite: Despite the spectacle, no high-ranking official came to negotiate his descent. The political class, often quick to rush to the scene of a tragedy for photo ops, was conspicuously absent, leaving Wepukhulu to face his demons alone.
• A Father’s Plea: "I have children who look up to me," he told reporters after finally coming down on Thursday evening. "How do I look them in the eye when I cannot provide?" His words echo the silent scream of millions of jobless Kenyans.

A System Broken

The incident in Uasin Gishu county is not an anomaly; it is a symptom. It highlights the growing despair among the youth and the working-age population who feel abandoned by a system that promised prosperity but delivered austerity. Wepukhulu has descended from the billboard, but his problem—and the nation's—remains unsolved.

As he walked away, exhausted and still jobless, Nicholas Wepukhulu left behind a question that hangs higher than any billboard: How desperate must a citizen become before the state takes notice? For 85 hours, we looked up at him. [...](asc_slot://start-slot-1)Now, we must look at ourselves.