NAIROBI, Kenya- When Gloria Orwoba walked into the Kenyan Senate, many thought she was just another young politician on the rise.
But as she quickly found out, Parliament isn’t built for women like her—bold, outspoken, and unwilling to play by the rules of the “old boys’ club.”
In a no-holds-barred interview on the Iko Nini Podcast, Gloria gets real about what it actually feels like to be a young woman in politics—and spoiler alert: it’s not all photo ops and power suits.
“It’s war. Psychological, emotional, institutional. You walk in with hope, but the system is built to break you,” she shares.
While the public celebrated her as a fresh voice of change, inside those committee rooms it was a different story.
She was often talked over, dismissed, and labeled as “too emotional” whenever she challenged the status quo—labels rarely thrown at her male counterparts.
“You quickly learn you’re tolerated, not embraced,” she says. “And the moment you speak up, you’re either ignored or attacked.”
But Gloria isn’t here to play nice—or play small. Her fuel comes from lived experience, and she’s determined not to shrink into silence. “I’ve watched women disappear because they were afraid to speak. I refuse to disappear.”
Instead of softening her voice, she’s raising it. Her presence in Parliament isn’t just symbolic—it’s a statement.
And she wants other young women watching to know that while the space may be hostile, they still belong.
“If you’re not playing by the old rules, you’re seen as a threat. But that’s okay. Let them feel threatened,” she says.
In 2025, it’s wild that walking into public office as a young woman still feels like stepping onto a battlefield.
