President commissions Uhuru Gardens monument, museum

President Uhuru Kenyatta has commissioned the magnificent Uhuru Gardens National Monument and Museum, 21 months after directing a multi-agency committee led by the Kenya Defence Forces to rehabilitate the grounds.

The garden, sitting on 65 acres, now boasts a tunnel of martyrs, an underground military gallery, a birth of Kenya gallery and a people of Kenya gallery showcasing the diversity of the country’s cultures.

It also hosts a presidential library, bronze sculptures of Kenya’s wildlife and stone carvings of freedom fighters Dedan Kimathi and Mekatilili wa Menza.

It has water features, 12,300 2D and 3D artefacts collected from various parts of the country and 40 different visual interviews by historians, academics, experts and country’s heroes.

From the sky, the new buildings bear the shape of a court of arms.

The refurbished garden seeks to better restore the history of the venue’s significant role in the country’s struggle for independence.

“Uhuru Gardens National Monument and Museum not only speaks of our pain as a country but also eloquently tells the story of our heroes, academicians, sportsmen and women,” said President Kenyatta

He added, “Stepping on these grounds should give us all a sense of national duty and reaffirm our patriotism.”

The President thanked the KDF for getting the work done even as the projects continue to accommodate 20 galleries highlighting the country’s culture and diversity.

Chief of Defence Forces General Robert Kibochi said the President personally supervised the project and offered guidance in the design and development stages.

“Today, every Kenyan across the country will have known how much we can do as a country if we work together, stay focused on national interests and not on individual interests,” General Kibochi said.

After an hour-long tour of the facility, President Kenyatta, with visiting Sierra Leone President Julius Bio, lit an eternal flame on the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior, a section preserved for the memory of those who died fighting for the country, and witnessed a colourful display of fireworks.

Also present at the event were Cabinet secretaries, diplomats, senior military officials, families of fallen heroes and other invited guests.