In a rare bipartisan chuckle amid Kenya’s tense political airwaves, Kapseret MP Oscar Sudi has hailed Babu Owino’s free online math lessons for KCSE 2025 candidates, admitting his own bafflement at the Embakasi East MP’s algebraic wizardry while pledging to tutor CRE and chemistry.
The shoutout, dropped on social media Friday, cut through the usual tribal barbs with Sheng-flavoured humour: “Mimi naye kusema kweli sikuelewa za Babu, lakini hapa mbele mnunue bundles, Niko vizuri kwa CRE na chemistry.”
As high schoolers nationwide scramble for revision amid biting exam fees, Sudi’s nod spotlights Owino’s grassroots grind, turning virtual classrooms into a beacon for underdog dreams in Nairobi’s bustling townships.
Owino, the firebrand opposition stalwart who’s traded protest placards for protractors, relaunched his “Professor Babu” sessions last weekend via Facebook Live, drawing over 50,000 viewers for a deep dive into Mathematics Papers 1 and 2.
From vectors to quadratic equations, the sessions, streamed gratis from his Kayole base, unpack KCSE puzzles with real-talk tips, like tackling logarithms “like haggling at Gikomba market”.
It’s vintage Owino: the ex-student leader, once tear-gassed at anti-fee demos, now empowering the same kids he once rallied. “Math isn’t elite; it’s survival,” he posted pre-class, urging viewers to “grab notebooks, not excuses.”
Netizens lapped it up, with memes flooding TikTok: one viral clip mashes Owino’s board scribbles with Drake’s “Started from the Bottom”. Sudi’s praise, from across the aisle, landed like an unexpected high-five in Parliament’s echo chamber.
The UDA fire-eater, known for unfiltered X rants, confessed his math myopia but flipped it into a bundle-buying call to action, Sheng for “stock up on data packs, folks.”
His CRE-Chemistry offer? A sly wink at his preacher roots and science savvy, perhaps eyeing youth votes in the 2027 scrum. “Babu’s dropping gems; I’ll handle the holy scripts and reactions,” Sudi quipped in replies, sparking a thread of 2,000+ laughs.
It’s a thaw in frosty ties, Owino’s ODM vs. Sudi’s Kenya Kwanza, proving shared hustles like exam woes can bridge divides. The buzz underscores a broader Kenyan saga: KCSE fever gripping 900,000+ Form 4s as November mocks loom, with maths pass rates languishing at 58% last year per KNEC stats.
Owino’s initiative, born from his 2020 pandemic tutorials that boosted 1,000+ passers, fills gaps left by cash-strapped tutors charging Sh2,000 per hour. Parents in Eldoret to Mombasa WhatsApp: “Babu saved my daughter’s grade, no fees, just WiFi.”
Even rivals chime in; Sakaja Johnson’s camp joked about “English with the governor”, while Vinnie Ohon’go fans pitched Sudi for lit lessons.