Why Kenyans Have Remained on the Streets in Protest
A week after President William Ruto withdrew the controversial finance bill that sparked widespread protests, thousands of Kenyans continue to demonstrate against bad governance by the current administration.
Kenyan police fired tear gas to scatter small crowds in the capital Nairobi on Tuesday after youth activists called for fresh protests following deadly violence during anti-tax hike demonstrations last month.
A week after President William Ruto announced the withdrawal of the controversial Finance Bill, thousands of Kenyan youth continue to protest. What initially started as demonstrations against the financial provisions of the proposed bill, has evolved into protests against bad governance and the alleged excesses of the Ruto-led administration at the expense of the living conditions of millions of Kenyans.
On Monday, the Kenyan National Commission on Human Rights reported that 39 people were killed and 361 more were injured during last week’s protests across Kenya. Today, those figures will most likely see an increase, as Kenyans return to the streets in protest. Today’s demonstrations, tagged “Occupy Everywhere,” have seen police use deadly force against peaceful demonstrators.
According to the live blog published and updated by Kenyans.Co.Ke, police have deployed water cannons, prevented protesters from advancing peacefully, sometimes with the use of force, and wreaked chaos across Nairobi and Mombasa.
In conceding to last week’s protests against the finance bill, many Kenyans were unconvinced of Ruto’s motivations, saying that his tone was notably harsh in last Tuesday’s late-night address, condemning peaceful protesters and declaring the protests to be treasonous. To many, that was the true portrayal of Ruto, not the genial speech he gave when withdrawing the finance bill last Wednesday.
During a media roundtable on Sunday, Ruto seemingly gave his critics more reasons to believe he was incapable of delivering the kind of good governance that addressed its citizens’ needs. Generally, many people believe that Ruto’s answers were tone-deaf, especially in the case of addressing a young boy who was shot by police during the protests. “The child is alive, right?” he asked rhetorically, a remark that quickly went viral and has increased the vim of protesters and young Kenyans who are chanting “Ruto Must Go” on protest grounds and across social media.
According to many Kenyans, paid thugs hijacked part of Tuesday’s protests, looting buildings and committing arson, giving police officers reason to attack peaceful protesters. In one viral video from earlier today, a medical staff admonishes a police officer for continually shooting at protesters without confrontation, making it impossible for the injured to have their wounds treated. In response, the police officer, out of the camera’s view, defiantly vowed to kill more protesters.
For many people, that today’s protests have again turned out to be violent is a reflection of Ruto’s harshness towards citizens. “It [is] so low of a govt to hire goons to infiltrate, loot, burn and rob peaceful protestors. It’s a reckless and stupid move which only proves their contempt for the people's voices,” X user @MuchiriiMike wrote in a post.
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