William Ruto - The African Mirror

Jul

12

2024

Kenyan President William Ruto fires entire cabinet amid violent protests

NEWS

IN an unprecedented move, Kenyan President William Ruto has dismissed his entire cabinet following violent protests that have rocked his administration. This drastic step comes as the second major action taken by Ruto to address the escalating unrest, which has gripped the nation in response to a controversial finance bill. Thirty-nine people were killed and scores injured during the protests. The finance bill, which many citizens blamed for sparking the violence, was withdrawn from Parliament by Ruto last week in an effort to quell the public outrage. However, the protesters have threatened to continue, prompting Ruto to take even more…

Jul

10

2024

By AWINO OKECH

Kenya’s protests are different this time: 3 things that make it harder for government to crush them

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS

ON 25 June 2024, a youth-led protest primarily composed of Gen Zs, as they are popularly referred to, stormed Kenya’s parliament. Legislators voted to pass the Finance Bill 2024 in its third and last reading ahead of presidential assent. This was the second countrywide protest over the proposed taxes in the draft law and excesses in government spending. The finance bill is a framework that determines how the government raises revenue. The Kenyan government had proposed raising US$2.7 billion by increasing taxes on essential goods and services, from cooking oil to bread. The bill also targeted digital revenue, where the…

Jul

04

2024

By The African Mirror

Protestors call on Kenyan President to quit

NEWS

Kenya experienced widespread unrest, with riot police clashing with protesters in Nairobi and other cities across the country. This marks the most extensive demonstrations since deadly protests a week ago that resulted in at least two dozen fatalities. According to Reuters, the protests began peacefully but turned violent as the day progressed. In Nairobi's business district, police fired tear gas and charged at stone-throwing demonstrators. The news agency describes scenes of burning kiosks, injured protesters, and police arrests. Reuters reports that the unrest has spread beyond the capital, with hundreds marching in Mombasa, Kenya's second-largest city. The news agency notes…

Jul

02

2024

By AARON ROSS

Kenyan activists call for more protests as govt pledges austerity

NEWS

KENYAN activists called for protesters to take to the streets again, with many rejecting appeals from President William Ruto for dialogue following his decision to withdraw proposed tax hikes. At least 24 people were killed in clashes between protesters and police last week when parliament was briefly stormed and set ablaze. The protests, which have been led by young people and organised largely on social media, were initially sparked by a finance bill intended to raise 346 billion Kenyan shillings ($2.69 billion) in taxes. But the demands of many protesters have escalated over the past two weeks to include calls to root out corruption and for…

Jun

29

2024

By DAVID LEWIS

Kenya protests expose jet-setting Ruto’s neglect of discontent at home

NEWS

IN the two years since he was elected, Kenya's President William Ruto has wowed global climate activists under the Eiffel Tower, brushed shoulders with global tech titans in Silicon Valley and was toasted as a global peacekeeper at the White House. As he notched up dozens of foreign trips, however, citizens back home endured gruelling economic hardship. Already hammered by a cost-of-living crisis and watching those in government enjoy the largesse derived from their positions, Kenyans forced Ruto to ditch plans to introduce eye-watering tax hikes after days of protests. The U-turn has exposed the gulf between the image of Ruto…

Jun

27

2024

By GIULIA PARAVICINI and AARON ROSS

Kenya president backs down on tax hikes after deadly unrest

NEWS

KENYAN President William Ruto withdrew planned tax hikes, bowing to pressure from protesters who had stormed parliament, launched demonstrations across the country and threatened more action this week. The move will be seen as a major victory for a week-old, youth-led protest movement that grew from online condemnations of tax rises into mass rallies demanding a political overhaul, in the most serious crisis of Ruto's two-year-old presidency. But some demonstrators said on social media that despite Ruto's climbdown they would go ahead with a rally planned for Thursday, with many reiterating demands that he resign. Ruto announced he would not sign a finance bill including…

Jun

26

2024

By AARON ROSS, GEORGE OBULUTSA and GIULIA PARAVICINI

Police fire on demonstrators trying to storm Kenya parliament, several dead

NEWS

KENYAN President William Ruto said security was his "utmost priority" after protests against a bill to raise taxes descended into violence, with police firing on demonstrators trying to storm the legislature, killing at least five. In chaotic scenes in the capital Nairobi, protesters overwhelmed police and chased them away in an attempt to enter the parliament compound, with Citizen TV later showing damage from inside the building, which had been partially set ablaze. Protests and clashes also took place in several other cities and towns across Kenya, with many calling for Ruto to quit as well as voicing their opposition…

Jun

28

2024

By KATHLEEN KLAUS

Kenya protests: Ruto pulling the finance bill is unlikely to satisfy angry young protesters – here’s why

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS, EDITORS CHOICE

IN a move that shocked observers, Kenya’s President William Ruto announced on 26 June he was withdrawing his government’s highly controversial finance bill. This followed two days in which tens of thousands of mostly young protesters took to the streets in nationwide rallies against the proposals contained in the country’s 2024 budget. Kathleen Klaus, who has studied political violence in Kenya, unpacks what drove the protesters. Did rising prices trigger the protests in Kenya? Sharp rises in livelihood goods, especially food and fuel, often serve as a trigger for protest and social unrest. This has been documented by several academic…

Jun

26

2024

By DUNCAN MIRIRI

Kenya’s finance bill: Why has it triggered protests?

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS

YOUTH-LED protests against the Kenyan government's plans to raise revenue through additional taxes are expected to intensify when lawmakers vote on proposed amendments to the bill. At least one person has been killed and more than 200 injured since protests against the finance bill swept the country earlier this month. Here are some details about the tax proposals: WHY THE FINANCE BILL? A finance bill is usually presented to parliament before the start of a financial year that runs from July to June, laying out the government's fiscal plans. In the 2024/25 bill, the Kenyan government aims to raise $2.7 billion in…

Jun

19

2024

By HUMPHREY MALALO

Kenyan parliament panel urges govt to scrap some new taxes as hundreds protest

NEWS

A Kenyan parliamentary panel recommended that the government scrap some new taxes proposed as part of next year's budget, as hundreds of protesters angered by the measures took to the streets in the capital Nairobi. The tax hikes, including new levies on cars and bread, are the latest effort by President William Ruto's administration to boost revenue and reduce borrowing, but they have triggered widespread opposition. Last year, the government introduced a housing tax and increased contributions to the national health scheme in moves that also sparked protests. Kimani Kuria, chair of the Kenyan parliament's finance committee, said the committee…