Ukambani: Police clash with protestors as one killed in Makueni

Protestors at Mutomo town in Kitui County during anti-government demonstrations on July 2, 2024. [Philip Muasya, Standard] Violent clashes erupted at Mutomo town in Kitui county on Tuesday when the Gen Z protestors clashed with the police, forcing business people to hurriedly close shop. The angry youths, waving placards stormed Mutomo town and chanted anti-government slogans, with some demanding an apology from the area MP Rachael Kaki Nyamai (Jubilee) who voted in support of the rejected Finance Bill. Police were forced to fire tear gas canisters as the protestors barricaded the town with stones, making movement along the busy Kibwezi - Mutomo - Kitui road impossible. At the CDF office where the protesters milled around, police used rubber bullets and fired live bullets in the air to disperse the crowd. Undeterred, the protestors in their hundreds marched through the town and poured into the main road, chanting "Kaki must go. Kaki must go." The protestors waylaid another gang of youth and beat them up, accusing them of being hired from the neighbouring county of Makueni to disrupt the protests. The subdued youths were then forced to join the protestors. Two days ago, the MP issued an apology through her Facebook page for supporting the finance Bill. "...my motivation to support the bill was driven by the development projects it promised, particularly the increased funding for education and rural electrification - areas in which our constituency has significant needs," her apology read. "I apologize that I did not fully engage and pledge to engage my constituents and the community more actively moving forward," she went on. Addressing the press later in the town, the protestors called for accountability on how the constituency funds were being managed, saying they deserved full inclusion in the affairs of the constituency. Similar protests were witnessed in Kitui town as the youngsters in solidarity joined their peers across the country. In Machakos town, an uneasy calm prevailed for the better part of Tuesday morning before things went haywire s from 2 pm. Hundreds of protesters chanting Ruto Must Go slogans lit fires and barricaded roads in the central business district as police remained on high alert to avert looting. Nearly all major business outlets remained closed as police engaged the unrelenting youths in running battles for the better part of the afternoon. Leading supermarkets including Naivas and Mass Mart shut both of their two respective outlets over fears of looting as dozens of shoppers opted to suspend their activities until today. Parents of children attending local day schools flocked to various institutions to pick up their children as armed police escorted several school buses to wade through the rowdy crowds. At the popular Wajuzi restaurant in the town's CBD, the erstwhile busy waiters remained idle in the afternoon hours as the majority of patrons opted to go home earlier than usual. "It's a bad day for us because our customer traffic is at an all-time low. From the look of things, we will register unusually low sales due to the day's interruption of business," said Christine Ndinda, a waiter. In Matuu town, rowdy youths barricaded the Thika-Garissa highway and engaged police in cat-and-mouse games for almost five hours. In Makueni County one person died after falling from a moving truck that was escaping rowdy protesters at Emali, along Mombasa-Nairobi highway. Confirming the death, Kilome Nursing Home hospital's in-charge Stanley Muia said the unidentified man, seemingly in his twenties, died immediately after getting admitted at the facility. "He suffered severe head injuries and we have moved the body to our morgue awaiting for identification," said Muia Demonstrators engaged police in Makindu township as police kept hawk-eye at a hotel associated with Kibwezi West MP Mwengi Mutuse. The angry demonstrators in their hundreds barricaded the busy highway with logs, and stones while lighting bonfires causing major traffic snarl-up. "We are in the process of recalling our area MP. He voted yes in the Finance Bill, 2024 which was against our will," a demonstrator chanted At Wote town demonstrations remained calm for the better part of the day. Police gave youths in their thousands enough security as they toured various offices to register their frustrations. [Philip Muasya, Erastus Mulwa, Stephen Nzioka, Victor Nzuma]

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