Why Kenya police chief was forced to resign by president in wake of fallout from deadly protests
President William Ruto has sought to respond to the social outcry with a series of steps. He withdrew the tax hike proposal and on Thursday he followed up by dismissing almost all of his Cabinet ministers. He vowed to form a new government that will be lean and efficient.
How Kenyan MPs’ lavish lifestyle set off a revolution by ‘social media tribe’ that consumed parliament, forced president to fire cabinet
In April and May during the build-up to the protests, ruling party MP Zaheer Jhanda posted videos of himself on TikTok admiring his gleaming Range Rover, a Mercedes G Wagon and a Lexus, triggering angry online commentary.
Protesters have since tried to storm his home, southwest of the capital Nairobi, in Kisii town. Jhanda did not respond to requests for comment.
‘You ain’t seen nothin’ yet, revolutionary Gen-Z are ready to storm State House and uproot Kenya’s corrupt president’
The opposition, meanwhile, has been surprised by its newfound irrelevance. Like the 19th century French politician Alexandre Ledru-Rollin, who during the French revolution is said to have declared, “There go the people. I must follow them, for I am their leader”, opposition leaders are belatedly rushing to hitch their wagon to the movement. How far their light has dimmed is illustrated by contrasting today’s movement with their attempt last year to capitalise on popular discontent over tax hikes, which failed to generate much lasting political pressure.
How Rwanda’s pluralist democracy pits ‘Kagame against Kagame’ in upcoming presidential poll
Paul Kagame, 66, took power as the leader of rebels who took control of Rwanda’s government and ended the genocide in 1994. Kagame was Rwanda’s vice president and de facto leader from 1994 to 2000, when he first became president. He has since ruled the East African country as an authoritarian who is intolerant of political dissent.
Court in Nairobi rules Kenyan government must pay family of slain Pakistan journalist $78,300
Last October his widow, Javeria Siddique, sued Kenya police’s paramilitary General Service Unit for her husband’s wrongful death. Sharif fled Pakistan after the government registered several treason cases against him.
Under pressure Kenya president apologises for arrogant government officials, police brutality
The president said the police are independent and not controlled by the executive branch of government but promised to ensure that those responsible would be prosecuted. “I am ultimately responsible because I am president, and that is why I said it was regrettable,” Ruto said.
Austerity: Subdued Kenya’s President Ruto caves in to nationwide protests against state extravagance
Austerity measures will include the dissolution of 47 state corporations, a 50 per cent reduction in the number of government advisers, the suspension of non-essential travel by public office bearers and the removal of budget lines for the president and deputy president’s spouses, he said.
Kenya rights groups accuse Ruto regime welcoming back abductions to t crack down on protests
Organised online and leaderless, the protests – initially a call to repeal tax hikes – have developed into a movement that has cut across Kenya’s traditional ethnic divisions, becoming the biggest threat of William Ruto’s two-year-old presidency.
Economist Owino succeeds Sirima at Central Bank of Kenya as head of debt management office
Kenya’s public finances were in focus early this year because of concerns it could default over a $2 billion international bond, and more recently because of violent protests that forced President William Ruto to withdraw planned tax hikes.
Revealed: Desperate Kenya’s President Ruto calls IMF boss after being forced to recall contentious tax plan
Analysts say its withdrawal a week ago is likely to result in Kenya missing key programme targets, although the government does not urgently need cash from the IMF after it was able this year to repay a bond that was originally worth $2 billion by issuing a new seven-year bond.
