Troublemakers ambled down Moi Avenue in Mombasa on July 2, 2024. Photo by Kevin Odit | Nation Media Group.
In Nairobi on Tuesday, Kenyan riot police unleashed tear gas against agitators. Protesters across various cities demanded the ouster of President William Ruto, following a tumultuous week of fatal anti-tax skirmishes.
Downtown Nairobi saw swirls of tear gas after agitators set blazes on Waiyaki Way, a central artery of the metropolis, and hurled rocks at law enforcement in the bustling heart of the capital.
In Mombasa, Kenya’s second-biggest city along the Indian Ocean shore, hundreds of demonstrators paraded in an ebullient spirit. Wielding palm fronds, they tooted plastic horns, pounded drums, and chanted, “Ruto must go!”
Ruto’s presidency, not yet two years old, faces its gravest ordeal. Stuck between creditors like the International Monetary Fund, urging deficit cuts, and citizens wrestling with sky-high living costs.
The protest group, leaderless and largely driven by social media, dismissed Ruto’s entreaties for dialogue despite his rollback of tax hikes that sparked the unrest.
“Folks are perishing in the streets, and all he talks about is money. We aren’t money. We’re human beings,” exclaimed protester Milan Waudo to Reuters in Mombasa. “He needs to care about his people, or we don’t need him in that chair.”
Kisumu, Nakuru, Kajiado, Migori, Mlolongo, and Rongo also saw protests, according to Kenyan TV footage. In Migori, protesters lit tyres on fire.
Since June 18, dozens have perished in clashes, most shot by police last Tuesday when protesters attempted to storm parliament to halt a vote on tax hikes.
Angered by the deaths—39 per the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR)—many demand Ruto’s resignation.
“We’re resolute in pushing for the president’s resignation,” stated Ojango Omondi, an activist in Nairobi. “We hope for a peaceful protest and minimal casualties.”
The authorities called for calm.
“Today is perfect for choosing patriotism, peace, order, and the sanctity of our nationhood,” State House communications director Gerald Bitok wrote on X, adding in Swahili, “Violence isn’t patriotism.”
Triggered by online fury over nearly $2.7 billion in proposed tax hikes, the protests have swelled into a national movement against corruption and misgovernance.
Ruto has instructed the treasury to find ways to cut spending to fill a budget gap left by the abandoned tax plans and mentioned increased borrowing.
John Githongo, a veteran anti-corruption crusader, told Reuters that while Ruto has addressed the media and the nation, “there’s no sign he intends to act” on demands like firing corrupt officials.
“The government hasn’t indicated any real plan to handle corruption calls seriously,” he remarked.
Protests were largely peaceful until last Tuesday when some demonstrators briefly stormed parliament and set part of it on fire, leading the police to open fire.
Ruto defended the police’s actions, attributing the violence to “criminals” hijacking the protests.
