Kenyan members of parliament were forced to flee the chambers through an underground tunnel after thousands of protesters stormed the premises on Tuesday to protest tax proposals of President William Ruto’s government contained in the Finance Bill 20204.
It was a historic day in the country on which thousands of Kenyans took to the streets in different parts of the country to demand that MPs shoot down the controversial bill that has imposed oppressive taxes. The highlight of the day’s events was the demonstrators overpowering police who had barricaded parliament buildings, burning part of the premises, sending lawmakers fleeing.
The protesters drew outrage and fire from police, prompting Ruto to issue a statement from State House, saying the government would deploy all possible means to quash the “treasonous” events “at whatever cost”.
Several people were killed in what has gone on record as the most direct assault on the government in decades.
“Today’s events mark a critical turning point on how we respond to threats to our national security,” President William Ruto said in his four-minute address to the nation.
A hurried Gazette notice was issued by Defence Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale, deploying the military to assist the police in dealing with the protesters, who have vowed to soldier on in their quest to oust Ruto’s administration.
Duale described the situation in the country as a “security emergency” following “breaching of critical infrastructure”.
Protesters had demanded that legislators vote against a finance bill imposing new taxes on East Africa’s economic hub, where frustrations over soaring cost of living have grown since Ruto was elected in 2022 on a promise of turning things around for ordinary Kenyans.
Coincidentally, it is the youth who had voted Ruto into power with cheers for his promises of economic relief that have taken to the streets to object to the pain of reforms.
Legislators hurriedly managed to pass the bill before fleeing through a tunnel as protesters poured into the house. Opposition MPs had withdrawn their proposed amendments, saying they had heeded calls by the protesters that they did not want amendment but total rejection of the bill.
A few blocks down from parliament, part of Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja’s offices were set ablaze, the same fate suffered by premises hosting Embu Governor Cecil Mbarire’s offices. Sakaja is a member of the ruling UDA, which is chaired by Mbarire.
Reports suggested there were attempts to storm the State House in Nakuru and there were clashes in the lakeside city of Kisumu and Mombasa on the Kenyan coast, where Governor Abdulswamad Sharrif Nassir joined the protesters and expressed his support for them.
Media reports showed evidence that Ruto’s 2022 strongholds in Nyeri, Eldoret, Kericho and Meru also witnessed mass demonstrations.
