June 25 Protests: William Ruto, Raila Odinga Leave Nairobi for Kilifi
- President William Ruto is among the mourners gracing the sendoff of Mzee Gideon Baya Mung’aro Senior, the father of Kilifi governor Gideon Mung'aro
- Accompanying Ruto to the funeral were other top luminaries, among them ODM leader Raila Odinga, Senate Speaker Amson Kingi, and Mining CS Hassan Joho
- Mzee Mung'aro breathed his last on June 15 after short illness that saw his admission at the Kilifi County Hospital
President William Ruto and ODM leader Raila Odinga have joined mourners at the funeral of Mzee Gideon Mung'aro Senior, the father of Governor Gideon Mung'aro.
Source: Twitter
The president landed in Dabaso on Wednesday morning, June 25, to witness the send-off of Governor Munag'aro's father, who breathed his last earlier this month.
How protests happened in Nairobi
Before departing Nairobi for the coast, the president was at State House, Nairobi, where he met with the envoy of the Aga Khan.
Kilifi remained calm as protests intensified in other parts of the country, including in the neighbouring Mombasa county.
State House Nairobi was among the critical government installations the organisers of the Wednesday protests had earmarked for occupation.
However, in anticipation of the events, state security enforcers were deployed to keep guard and restrain unauthorised movements.
To reinforce their guard, the officers laid rolls of razor wire to block movement.
In the city centre, Nairobi, protesters traversed the streets as the police followed closely to repulse any act of lawlessness.
In many instances, the officers unleashed tear gas to disperse the crowds that advanced to critical areas.
Parliament was also cordoned off with rolls of razor wire, with lawmakers being forced to flee the legislature chambers in the course of sessions on Wednesday.
The protests were not staged in Nairobi alone.
In Mombasa, locals were on the streets from Wednesday dawn armed with whistles and other harmless paraphernalia, ready for the day's events.
Crowds of protesters were also majorly staged in Eldoret, Kakamega, Nakuru, Nyahururu and Kisii, among other towns.
The protests were in commemoration of the killings perpetrated against young Kenyans protesting against Finance Bill 2024 outside the National Assembly.
Source: Getty Images
How William Ruto reacted to protests
Meanwhile, appearing to strike a conciliatory tone, the president called on the protesting Kenyans to be considerate of the laws and the fact of Kenya being their only home and shun violence.
Ruto said the focus ought to be on developing the country at the expense of back and forth on the streets.
He implied that it was counterproductive for one to sabotage their country through destructive protests, explaining that
"Kenya has so many positive things to concentrate on,” adding “we are building roads, improving agriculture, making our economy better, and ensuring we eliminate hunger. We are providing employment opportunities for our youths and ensuring proper functioning of our hospitals. That is the main agenda, the unity and development of our nation.”
On his part, Raila urged the government to tone down excessive use of force on the protesters while urging those partaking in the protests to remain peaceful.
The ODM leader observed that it was the right of the protesters to take to the streets to air their grievances, urging them to be orderly in that pursuit.
Proofreading by Jackson Otukho, copy editor at TUKO.co.ke.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
