'Mwacheni akufie hapo’: Witness recounts police brutality during Gen Z protets

A demonstrator testifying in the inquest into the death of Rex Masai has recounted a chilling moment from last year’s Gen Z protests against the Finance Bill. 

Mekatilili Mweru, a poultry farmer, told the inquest that on June 24, 2024, as police officers cracked down on demonstrators in Nairobi’s CBD, her friend Laban Njoroge pointed out a young man lying in a pool of blood.

At that moment, she said she heard one of the officers say, “Muwacheni akufie hapo”—let him die there. 

Though she did not see the officer who uttered the words, she described the scene as chaotic, with police using force to disperse protesters.

“They were beating us simultaneously… I was injured on my right hand. Other than my head, they were hitting us everywhere,” she testified. 

According to Mweru, the protests had remained peaceful for most of the day until around 5 p.m., when the police moved in aggressively.

As demonstrators scattered, she and Laban found themselves on Moi Avenue, surrounded by officers armed with long guns and batons. 

"There was tear gas the whole day, and sometimes the sounds made us wonder whether that was really just tear gas or something more," she said. 

As they tried to escape, Laban tripped. She stopped to help him, but they were quickly overpowered. "

We were afraid to run because we thought they’d shoot us from behind. We decided to stay and shield ourselves," she recalled. 

It was then that Laban noticed the bleeding young man and overheard the officer’s chilling remark. 

The witness emphasised that the demonstrators had no leaders—only posters and a shared cause. 

The inquest into Rex Masai’s tragic death continues, with more testimonies expected to shed light on what transpired that day.