Passaris urges Kenyan government to make Diwali festival a national holiday
Nairobi Women Representative Esther Passaris has urged the Kenyan government to make Diwali festival a national holiday.
In a post on her social media, Passaris posed: “Ended my day at the Sikh Temple in the company of friends celebrating Diwali, the Festival of Lights. It is sad that Kenya refuses to honor the Asian community by gazetting this day as a holiday. We have several Christian and Muslim holidays. Why not include the Diwali Festival?”
Ended my day at the Sikh Temple in the company of friends celebrating Diwali, the Festival of Lights. It is sad that Kenya refuses to honor the Asian community by gazetting this day as a holiday. We have several Christian and Muslim holidays. Why not include the Diwali Festival? pic.twitter.com/wbbaQfxhST
— Hon. Esther M Passaris (@EstherPassaris) October 24, 2022
Though the tweet elicited varying opinions, with Kenyans on Twitter (KOT) questioning her religion, Ms Passaris thanked the Hindu for welcoming her in their event.
“I was honoured and humbled to hear you recite the beautiful prayer. Your voice a gift to many. The depth of the words recited delivered a meaningful message that captured one’s consciousness. I left wiser and with more understanding of this life that we endeavour to journey,” she responded.
I was honoured and humbled to hear you recite the beautiful prayer. Your voice a gift to many. The depth of the words recited delivered a meaningful message that captured one’s consciousness. I left wiser and with more understanding of this life that we endeavour to journey. 🙏 https://t.co/4jIDBhLrGE
— Hon. Esther M Passaris (@EstherPassaris) October 25, 2022
Earlier, there was speculation that Monday could have been a public holiday but the Ministry of Interior quashed it.
There has also been a debate that Kenya has several holidays and there is no need to add more. So far Kenya has more than 10 public holidays with those falling on Sunday being observed on Monday.
“Our attention has been drawn to a purported Gazette notice issued by the Ministry of Interior declaring Monday 24th October 2022 a public holiday. Members of the public are advised that this is FAKE notice that should be ignored,” the ministry said in a tweet.
Diwali is a Hindu religious festival of lights and is one of the key festivals within Hinduism.
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