KENYA POLICE HIGH HANDEDNESS UNDER PROBE

Raymond Jumah, Kenya 

The Independent Police Oversight Authority in Kenya (IPOA) is investigating cases where several people are allegedly shot dead by the police as well as allegations against the police using excessive force. Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have said. 

They have added that all institutions with authority on security issues, including the police department, should clearly announce to citizens that they protect every citizen's right to participate in peaceful meetings and protests in the future.

Earlier today, (Tuesday, June 25) at least four young people lost their lives after being shot by the police who were preventing violence during protests in different cities in Kenya. 

The youth met death while trying to enter the National Assembly, an area which on Tuesday was under tight security while the complex Finance Bill was being discussed and amended.

Protests were witnessed in different parts of the country against the passage of the Finance Bill 2024, and an unknown number of people are feared to have been shot dead by the police.

The former Prime Minister of Kenya Hon. Raila Amolo Odinga is one of the leaders who denounced the killing. 

"I am saddened by the brutality of the police against young people who were protesting peacefully and by the law... I am saddened by the killings, arrests, detentions and searches conducted by the police of our boys and girls who just want to be heard about the unjust tax, which robs them of their lives today and in the future," Bwa Raila said

Mr Raila, through an official statement to the media, said "It is a sad thing to see the government using its security agencies to "destroy children who protested peacefully to exercise their constitutional right".

The Finance Bill 2024 passed by MPs on Tuesday afternoon, now waiting to be signed into law by President Ruto, is feared to make life difficult due to the additional tax (VAT) proposed for some goods and services.