Ruto asks for prayers as Kenyan protests enter fourth week

After weeks of social media hashtags asking Kenya’s Parliament to scrap a plan to raise taxes failed to convince elected representatives, thousands of Kenyans took their protest offline, arguing that a second tax increase in two years was excessive. The Kenyan government dug in, with Parliament passing the bill on the day of the protest and policemen killing at least 41 people. As the government responded forcefully, citizens became more insistent about their demands.

Eventually, the tax proposals were scrapped on June 27, but the protests have continued with demonstrations scheduled for Tuesday and Thursday. It is the longest-running protest in Kenyan history and the key ask is the resignation of Ruto, a hustler popular with young voters just two years ago.

The President, who has made significant concessions in the last two weeks, appears genuinely puzzled at how quickly public anger has calcified. On Thursday, he dissolved his cabinet and committed to reducing government overhead. He has also walked back some of his bluster from an ill-advised national address on the night of June 25.

Yet it is too little, too late for Kenyans who want justice for the 41 protesters killed. The resignation of Police Chief Japhet Koome has not calmed a public that wants the policemen involved in the killings tried for murder.

“Koome has resigned, but it should not end with resignation,” said Philip Kisia, a leadership and governance expert. The entire government, the Kenya Kwanza government, should have tendered its resignation.”

At a church service in Nyandarua, a county 170km north of Nairobi, Ruto sounded out of touch with protesters’ demands.

“I am fully in charge, I am stronger, I assure Kenyans that I will have a very effective cabinet to serve Kenyans, I will have a government of national unity. Pray for me, my government is committed to moving Kenya forward.”

Those words sound hollow to most people because public trust in the government has disappeared. The young people who backed Ruto over Raila Odinga in the 2022 presidential elections phrase it better.

“The President is talking about having a new cabinet when people are asking serious questions on accountability. There’s no word on corruption and misuse of public resources, yet they want us to believe that changing a few faces in government will fix this country,” said Chris Obwar, a 19-year-old graphic design student in Nairobi.