Tensions have reached a boiling point in Kenya as citizens take to the streets to protest the handling of the 2022 presidential election. The protesters, consisting of men, women and children, are demanding justice after President William Ruto was declared the winner in an election that they claim was not free and fair.
Adding fuel to the fire is the high cost of living in the country, which has left many struggling to make ends meet.Despite facing residtance from police officers deployed to quell the protests, the sheer number of demostrators proved too great for law enforcement to control and March to the CBD
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Once at the CBD, the protesters began their demonstrations and chanted anti-government slogans to force the government to resign.
The police, after being overwhelmed by the protesters, are now attempting to control the situation by deploying additional officers to the area.
Raila Odinga, who lost to Ruto in August's poll, has urged nationwide protests as he attempts to harness dissatisfaction with the president.
The discontented include some of those who voted for Ruto and feel he has not delivered on pledges to help the country’s forgotten "hustlers," or working class Kenyans.
Police officers in riot gear fired tear gas at hundreds of rock-throwing protesters in the capital Nairobi's vast Kibera slum, who chanted: "Ruto must go."
They also used tear gas to disperse demonstrators trying to gather in the Central Business District, from where Odinga has called for a march toward the president's State House residence, Reuters reporters said.
In the western city of Kisumu, an Odinga stronghold, police fired barrages of tear gas in the direction of protesters who had started fires in the road, footage on Citizen TV showed.
At least four members of parliament were arrested during protests in Nairobi, including the minority leaders of the National Assembly and Senate, Odinga's spokesman, Dennis Onyango, said.
Despite Ruto's promises to bring down living costs since taking power in September; inflation has remained high in East Africa's economic powerhouse, rising to 9.2% in February.
The opposition leader Raila Odinga has framed the demonstration as an opportunity to protest the 2022 presidential election, which he believes was tainted by fraud.
Despite Odinga’s repeated losses in presidential elections, the protests demonstrate that many Kenyans share his concern about the country’s electoral process. The Supreme Court’s affirmation of president Ruto’s win has not deterred the protesters, who are continueing to demand change.
While the demonstrations have been largely peaceful, they serve as a reminder of the violent election cycles in 2007 and 2017. The battle for justice in Kenya is far from over, and it remains to be seen how the government will respond to the protester’s demands.
