The Kenya Parliament Building on Tuesday turned into a battleground of sorts after it was stormed by thousands of people protesting the passing of a contentious Bill by MPs introducing more taxes on the people.
Several protesters who accessed the building were shot dead and several others were injured as police and the army attempted to restore order. The number of those shot dead was yet to be verified but several witnesses reported seeing many bodies.
A police pickup truck barricading the road leading to Parliament was set ablaze. Protesters also damaged a section of parliament where a huge plume smoke could be seen.
The protesters stormed the House shortly after the MPs had passed the Finance Bill 2024 which introduces unpopular tax proposals that have drawn a lot of anger nationwide.
The controversial bill, which has provisions that are seen as imposing extra burdens on ordinary citizens and businesses, has sparked a huge outcry from a public already burdened with a high cost of living.
It has triggered youth-led protests, which, though largely peaceful, have led to at least one death and hundreds of injuries as well as arrests – all of which have been condemned by lawyers and human rights groups.
Thousands poured into the streets on Tuesday to take part in youth-led rallies against the government bill to hike taxes.
The government dropped some of the contentious proposals, but it has done little to assuage public anger.
Many now want the entire bill scrapped. On Sunday, Ruto had praised protesters for demonstrating peacefully, promising that the government would engage with them on the way forward.
The mainly Gen-Z-led rallies began last week and had been mostly peaceful, But tensions sharply escalated on Tuesday afternoon, as crowds began to throw stones at police and push back against barricades, making their way towards the parliament complex, which was sealed off by police in full riot gear. The protests have spread to other cities and towns across Kenya, including Kisumu, Lodwar, Kakamega, Kisii, Nakuru, Eldoret, Nyeri, Meru, Nanyuki, Mombasa, and Kilifi.