Nominated Senator James Murango has strongly condemned the recent killings linked to protests across Kenya, urging leaders to exercise restraint and avoid inflammatory rhetoric that fuels further violence.

Speaking during a Senate session on July 15, 2025, Murango laid bare the sequence of events that led to the deaths of innocent citizens.

“There are three things that happened,” he said. “First, there were protests by Gen Z. Second, thugs infiltrated and disrupted those protests. Third, there were passersby who were killed without being part of the protests. Some were shot while in their homes or at work.”

He proposed compensation for families of those killed, saying that while lives cannot be restored, affected families deserve support to rebuild their lives.

“It is good that those who were killed unjustly be given compensation so they can move on with their lives, even though we cannot restore their lives,” he said.

Murango criticised leaders who have publicly issued statements encouraging violence, warning that such remarks only worsen an already volatile situation.

“I have heard some leaders publicly saying that people should be killed. It is wrong for a leader to stand and utter words that incite killings,” he said.

The senator pointed out the disproportionate impact of the violence on ordinary citizens, especially the poor.

“Many think that those who are killed are ‘them’ and not ‘us’. But among those killed, I haven’t heard of even one being a leader’s child,” he noted.

Using a local proverb to drive his message home, Murango said, “As the elders said, ‘The poor man’s hen does not lay eggs, and if it lays, it does not hatch, and if it hatches, the chick is eaten by a hawk.’ It is the chicks of the poor that have been lost.”

Calling for a moment of reflection, Murango urged the country to tone down political tensions and allow families space to mourn.

“I humbly request that we observe silence. Let us not speak words of incitement or provocation to give space for the bereaved to bury their loved ones and mourn in peace,” he said.

He warned that Kenya risks destabilisation if leaders continue to play politics with national tragedies.

“We have seen this saw now. Let us be careful not to use it to cut down the forest we rely on for cover, lest we be left exposed.”

His remarks have sparked renewed calls for leadership accountability and justice for protest victims.