As Nakuru residents came together on the 1^st of December 2021 to celebrate the new city status at Nyayo Gardens, Raphael Githuka was seated about 20 Kilometers from the venue in Bahati, watching former President Uhuru Kenyatta lift up a plaque of Nakuru city logo.

This was confirmation that the logo he had designed roughly 5 months before this event had been selected, but no one from the County Government had reached out to him with any news of this.

“The previous night I had seen the logo on an invitation card that one of my friends had shared on a common WhatsApp page. I thought the County Government would definitely reach out,” Githuka recalled.

However, on the D-Day, as the colorful celebrations were ongoing, no communication was forthcoming.

It was at this point that Githuka decided to publish a Facebook post expressing his frustration and near disbelief on how this matter had been carried out. Only then did organizers of the City status event reach out to him.

“I got phone calls from county officials who asked to meet up so that we could resolve this issue that at this point was viral on social media,” said Githuka.

Two days later on 3^rd December, at the former Deputy Governor’s office, Githuka was awarded the Ksh 50,000 award money and a gift hamper as consolation for the treatment he had received.

Raphael Githuka (right) receives a dummy cheque from former Nakuru Deputy Governor Dr. Eric Korir at the County Government of Nakuru offices on 3rd December 2021.

Although the County Government eventually acknowledged him as the designer of the city logo, Githuka believes that attending the event would have had more impact than the hurriedly planned award ceremony in the DGs office.

“It is unfortunate that government institutions and even private companies take advantage of artists because they mostly comprise of young people,” says the 25-year-old.

This experience he says showed him the importance of understanding intellectual property laws as well as policies around patenting and copyright of designs.

“There should be regulations that govern these competitions in terms of the least amount of prize money allowed and the terms of engagement to ensure the artists are not disadvantaged,” he says.

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Meet 25 year old who Designed Nakuru City's Logo

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