Kenyan activists have asked Sports Cabinet Secretary Ababu Namwamba for clarity regarding the list of attendees for the upcoming Paris Olympics 2024.

On July 9, 2024, the activists posted a statement to their X accounts expressing their desire for transparency and accountability in the selection process of individuals accompanying athletes to the prestigious event.

As seen in a demand letter signed by lawyer Ochiel Dudley, activists emphasized their need for CS Ababu to disclose the names of those who would be part of the official delegation.

“We act for Charleen Njuguna, Jolly Lanji, and Bevalyne Kwamboka. Our clients are active citizens who, from the Rio experience, are concerned about the true cost of Kenya’s delegation to the Paris Olympics. The Olympics run from Friday, 26 July 2024 to Sunday, 11 August 2024,” the demand letter read in part.

Good morning @AbabuNamwamba we mean business and consider yourself served pic.twitter.com/3keaapc8Do

— Bevalyne Kwamboka (@bevalynekwambo3) July 9, 2024

Several other demands were made by the activists, adding that the CS had seven days to comply and update the public about all non-competitive participants travelling on public expense with the official Kenyan delegation to Paris.

Further, the activists demanded visibility into the schedules for the individual roles of non-competitive participants who would travel. They also demanded that a schedule of allowances and sustenance expenses be shared for each participant.

Additionally, the activists requested that CS Ababu share the cumulative costs of the non-competitive participants who will be travelling on public money. Further,  the activists hoped that CS Ababu would act promptly and refrain from forcing litigation as they waited for his response. 

Team Kenya’s Paris Olympics Kits

The demand letter follows a Friday unveiling at the State House of Kenya’s ceremonial kit for Paris 2024 that drew mixed reactions from netizens.

The design received a lot of criticism on social media, with many users calling it hideous and questioning who was responsible for it.

To highlight the country’s style, culture, and heritage at the opening and closing ceremonies, the kit resembled traditional Maasai outfits with red and black colours being dominant.

One famous Kenyan journalist James Smart took to X to criticise the design, writing; “While we are very busy repairing the Kenyan image, some saboteurs, enemies of the people, did this. What is the hideousness of this? Who’s responsible?”