Police mount roadblocks on city roads ahead of Saba Saba rally

The government on Friday, July 7, 2023, deployed heavy security in major cities in the country ahead of the anticipated Saba Saba rallies.

Anti-riot police officers mounted roadblocks around key establishments including roads leading to State House Nairobi, Kisumu, Nakuru and Mombasa over fears of a daring match by protesters.

Azimio la Umoja – One Kenya coalition leader Raila Odinga is set to lead the Saba Saba protests at Kamukunji Grounds in Nairobi with several other principals set to host similar events in various parts of the country to protest against the high cost of living.

Various civil society groups are also set to hold processions in major towns to mark Saba Saba Day today. Human rights activists in Mombasa under the umbrella of the Coast Civil Society Movement are among groups that have been allowed to hold their rallies.

Police also confirmed on Thursday that they had allowed the opposition to hold their meeting at Kamukunji Grounds, but insisted that protests within the city will not be entertained.

“Their meeting at Kamkunji Grounds is allowed, and they can proceed. They are not allowed to hold street protests,” Nairobi police boss Adamson Bungei told the media.

The opposition intends to use the protests to force the Kenya Kwanza administration to repeal the Finance Act 2023 over what they term as punitive additional taxes imposed on Kenyans.

“Ruto is imposing taxes without our consent and implementing laws that only make our lives more difficult. We cannot tolerate the current state of taxation and its accompanying injustices any longer.

“Ruto has even removed subsidies on essential goods like fuel, Unga (maize flour), electricity, and school fees, while providing subsidies to helicopter owners and financing the lavish lifestyles of his allies with our hard-earned money,” Raila said in a statement last Tuesday as he threatened to launch an initiative to collect signatures with the aim of removing President William Ruto from office.

Azimio maintains the protests will be peaceful.

“Violence is abhorrent to us. Our engagement in pickets, protests, tax boycotts, and civil disobedience does not advocate violence. We have never endorsed violence in the past, and we never will. We firmly believe in the law and the rule of law, and we will act within its boundaries,” he added.

Saba Saba Day is commemorated on July 7 of every year to reflect on Kenya’s struggle for multi-party democracy in the early 1990s, popularly known as the ‘Second Liberation’.