Kenyan police tear gas protesters calling for President Ruto to resign
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The "RutoMustGo" hashtag has gone viral during Tuesday's rallies as protesters continue to demand the President's resignation.
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Protesters scatter as Kenya police spray a water canon at them during a protest over proposed tax hikes in a finance bill in downtown Nairobi, Kenya, on June 25, 2024. (AP)
In the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, police used tear gas on dozens of protesters on Tuesday as calls for the resignation of President William Ruto spread around the nation.
This comes after Ruto proposed a large reduction in public spending last week amid growing popular outrage. 39 people have been killed and 361 have been reportedly injured in Kenya's nationwide anti-government protests, the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights announced in a statement last week.
Some of the young Gen-Z Kenyans spearheading the rallies had asked for Kenya's police chief Japhet Koome's removal, with rights organizations accusing police of deploying excessive force, amid claims of abductions.
The "RutoMustGo" hashtag is being used during Tuesday's rallies as protesters continue to demand the president's resignation.
An AFP journalist reported that young people armed with clubs stood guard outside their companies in Nairobi's central business sector, the epicenter of previous protests, where there was a strong police presence.
Eldoret, the president's stronghold in the Rift Valley, and Kisumu, the home of the opposition, also saw protests, while the small groups held signs that said, "Stop killing protesters" and "Justice for Gen-Zs" and yelled, "We are protesting peacefully."
35-year-old Josephat Gikari told AFP, "Why are they tear gassing us."
"We are not armed, we are only carrying a flag," he said accusing officers of provoking street violence.
Gilbert Mutembei expressed as he waved a "RutoMustGo" placard, "We are peaceful, we should be left to hold our demonstrations and we are not relenting," demanding that Ruto step down and affirming that "dissolving the cabinet is not enough."
Amid the gravest crisis of his nearly two-year leadership, Ruto fired nearly his whole government last week and pledged additional reforms.
Kenya's Inspector General of Police Japhet Koome resigned a week ago and became the latest to depart and Ruto has "accepted the resignation," while his deputy Douglas Kanja has been designated as acting chief.
Although some hailed the cabinet appointment, several young Kenyans were dissatisfied with Ruto's failure to deliver on his 2022 election pledges to generate employment and improve their fortunes.
Ruto promised drastic cutbacks to government expenditure last week, including travel and renovation expenses, and indicated he would borrow more to pay for some services, despite Kenya's large foreign debt of over $78 billion, or almost 70% of GDP.
