Kiambu Senator Karungo Thangwa has sent a warning to the political class in Kenya following the protests in Nepal, which forced the country’s Prime Minister Sharma Oli to resign after days of deadly protests by the Gen Zs.

In a TikTok post on Tuesday, September 9, 2025, Thangwa warned politicians against positioning themselves to be known better than their citizens, stating that listening to the public is vital in a democracy.

“You can be a good person with a lot of vision, promises, but if you do not listen to the people, they will make sure that you listen to them,” Thangwa observed.

Watch Karungo’s warning to the political class in Kenya.

A lesson to politicians

“This is a lesson to us, the politicians; It doesn’t matter what you do to the people. If you do not listen to them, it can turn against you within a minute,” he said.

“This is a call for politicians who think that they know better than the people to think hard, because today you can do something and tomorrow you are not in the office.”

Before his resignation on Tuesday, September 9, 2025, Oli had been a darling of the masses and had even served in prison for 14 years due to his activism against the monarchy that was in Nepal.

Deadly Nepal protests

The protests, which began initially after the government banned all social media platforms over claims of improper registration, quickly morphed into anti-corruption calls on the ruling administration.

The social media ban was widely seen as an attempt by the state to stifle dissent.

A police crackdown on Monday, September 8, 2025, during the protests left 19 people dead, and this intensified public anger.

The protests then shifted to broader issues of government corruption and nepotism as the youth of Nepal, or ‘Gen Z’, felt frustrated with the lack of economic opportunities in the country.

In the anger and widespread demos, the Gen Z protesters torched Parliament, the Supreme Court, and the private residence of the Prime Minister and those of other prominent politicians.

This is after they decried the opulence displayed by the children of the high and mighty as the ordinary citizens languished in poverty and lack of economic opportunities.