Road to Damascus moment? Kenyan politicians shocking change of tune after Gen Z uprising

Dubbed the 'Gen Z protests', the demonstrations started as calls for the rejection of the now-withdrawn Finance Bill 2024 which was proposing unbearable taxations for Kenyans amid a crippling economy.

Calls for scrapping the punitive tax laws the nation has buckling under became louder every time the young patriots hit the streets, many fronting the deeply-rotted corruption adopted by leaders and the blatant misappropriation of public funds.

The demonstrations reached their peak on June 25, 2024, when Kenya's Parliament was breached at the expense of young people being shot dead and many others sustaining gunshot wounds.

Gen Z's sheer force finally forced President William Ruto to concede and say he would not append his signature on the unsavoury Bill which partially quelled the mounting rage among the youth.

The young people switched gears to call for Ruto's ousting, arguing that the Bill was just part of a bigger plague ailing the nation. They threatened a march to State House dubbed #OccupyStateHouse demanding the disbandment of the Ruto's government.

By this time, around June 27, homes and businesses belonging to MPs who had voted in favour of the Bill were attacked and looted or torched. Legislators were threatened and they ran into hiding.

Parliament also went for a two-week recess allowing time for the shivering legislators.

A week later, the Senate held a plenary sitting and the mood inside the House seemed aphonic and abased. Senators suddenly seemed to have ameliorated their perspectives on governance and adopted "sober talk".

Taking the floor, Majority Leader Aaron Cheruiyot, who has been a fearless soldier of Ruto's tax policies, tendered a melancholic apology to Kenyans for the decisions he has made in his capacity that might have vexed citizens.

"I want to tender my unreserved apology to the country for either by commission or omission everything that I have contributed into getting us in the mess and the place that we are in," he said.

"I have reflected deeply the last few days and moved through my journey as an individual and asked myself very serious questions trying to wear the shoes of the ordinary citizens and how they feel at this particular time."

Cheruiyot said that Senators now share a mutual perspective on the poor state of the nation, noting that the youth-led protests served as an awakening call for most Senate representatives.

"We sat somewhere, off camera, together and reasoned on what is it we can make as our contribution. We are deeply embarrassed that it has taken young children to point to us that you are naked as our leaders," he said.

"I realised that we live in extraordinary times and ordinary solutions that we had proposed in the past cannot work this time."

What followed for an hours-long clobbering at the National Assembly as Senators accused MPs of being the proponents of graft in the country and having sustained the wastage of public funds.

Senators from the opposition and government joined forces in singing the same tune on cutting expenditure, upholding austerity measures and further throwing their fellow MPs under the political bus.

Senator Boni Khalwale called for a total abolishment of the offices of First Lady, Spouse of the Deputy President, Spouse of the Prime Cabinet Secretary and county first ladies.

He further criticized Kimilili MP Didmus Barasa and other politicians for their public display of wealth as Kenyans struggle with the biting cost of living.

Khalwale said politicians’ public display of opulence is among the issues angering Kenyans amid the ongoing anti-government protests.

“Hon. Didmus Barasa, take it easy; helicopters will not change your life,” Khalwale told the MP, who was recently reported to have acquired a multi-million-shilling chopper that he uses to attend public functions.

The call for accountability and cutting down on costs was further echoed by Senators Edwin Sifuna (Nairobi), Richard Onyonka (Kisii), and Enoch Wambua (Kitui).

"It does not make sense, so what you do. MPs, staff have to be honest with Kenyans. There are ways of reducing the expenditure in a manner that will reduce the burden on taxpayers," Sifuna said.

"I don't need all that money, even if I ran up and down the expressway for a year, I would never exhaust the amount. We must do this so that we demonstrate to the people that we are serious."

The sanctity act in the Senate was hushed by Belgut MP Nelson Koech on Thursday, who said that the Senators were just hypocritical and they were wolves hiding behind sheep masks.

"What I watched in the Senate is hypocrisy that stinks to the highest heavens. People who are not honest, who are claiming that we've been receiving so much money because of the moment," said Koech speaking on Citizen TV.

"I live with these people, we are in parliament with them, I know their hearts. These people want money so badly."

President Ruto was also forced to rescind his stand on the protests after he made a tough-sounding speech on the evening of June 25 which was met with heightened ridicule from the public.

In his speech, he did not mention the legislation that set off the protests and rather said that the “legitimate” protests against proposed tax increases were infiltrated and hijacked by “organized criminals” and that the security of the nation remains his priority.

"Freedom of assembly, demonstrations, and picketing by a section of law-abiding citizens was infiltrated and hijacked by a group of organized criminals. Most regrettably, today's attack on Kenya's constitutional order has resulted in the loss of lives also destruction of property," said Ruto. 

"I have directed all the organs of our national security to deploy measures to thwart any attempt by dangerous criminals to undermine the security of our country."

A day later, after temper heaped among dejected Kenyans, Ruto made a U-turn and made a second speech vowing to withdraw the Bill and engage the nation's "sons and daughters" in productive talks.

"It is necessary for us to have a conversation as a nation going forward. How do we manage the affairs of our country together? I will be proposing an engagement with the young people of our nation, our sons and daughters for us to listen to them."

MPs have also bowed to the pressure as Kapseret MP Oscar Sudi even announced that he will be taking an indefinite hiatus from active politics.

Meanwhile, Ruto has vowed to heed some of the demands made by the vexed youth including scrapping unconstitutional offices, firing his advisors and significantly slashing expenditures for state officers.