Kenyan Nationals Are Warned by the Nigerian Government Not to Participate in Riots
Abike Dabiri-Erewa, the Chairman of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), has cautioned Nigerians living in Kenya amid the recent demonstrations in their nation.
It was documented multiple acts of violence committed by government officials during Kenyan protests against the country’s tax increases.
Dabiri-Erewa reported on Thursday that the Nigerian Embassy in Kenya has been actively interacting with different communities to
guarantee the security and welfare of Nigerian nationals, especially those who are students.
Responding to a remark on X by self-described activist Dr. Olukemi Olunloyo, who questioned Dabiri-Erewa, the
Nigerian embassy said that no warnings had been sent to Nigerian nationals about the events in Kenya, where eight demonstrators were shot and killed by Kenyan police.
“Our kids in Kenya in particular have been cautioned to be cautious and watchful as the Kenyan government has imposed a shoot at sight.
We hope and pray that there are no casualties among Nigerians right now, Dabiri-Erewa stated.
It was earlier revealed that a Kenya Medical Association official verified that 13 demonstrators were slain on Tuesday during the
country’s ongoing anti-tax demonstrations, following the police’s use of force against the protesters who stormed the Kenyan parliament.
This came as the government had sent the army to assist the police in dealing with “the security emergency”
in the nation, as acknowledged by Kenya’s Minister of Defense, Aden Bare Duale, in a brief statement.
The Minister of Defense had stated, “The Kenya Defence Forces is deployed on June 25, 2024, in support of the National Police Service in
response to the security emergency caused by the ongoing violent protests in various parts of the Republic of Kenya resulting in destruction and breaching of critical infrastructure,
in accordance with Article 241 (3) (b) of the Kenyan Constitution as read with sections 31 (1) (a), 31 (1) (c), 33 (1), 34 (1), and 34 (2) of the Kenya Defence Forces Act, (Cap. 199).”
Thousands of people marched against the tax rises last week in Nairobi, the nation’s capital, and other locations across the nation as part of the generally peaceful youth-led rallies.
As a result of police using live bullets on demonstrators that subsequently entered the parliament complex on Tuesday afternoon, tensions escalated.
“So far, we have at least 13 people killed, but this is not the final number,” stated Simon Kigondu, President of the
Kenya Medical Association, who also stated that he had never witnessed “such level of violence against unarmed people,” according to AFP.
At Nairobi’s Kenyatta National Hospital, an official reported on Wednesday that physicians were tending to “160 people… some of them with soft tissue injuries, some of them with bullet wounds”.
The strong opposition, primarily among young Kenyans, to the government’s proposed taxes is reported to have caught them off guard.
Numerous bodies were seen scattered across the ground in photos from the protests that went viral on social media and on local TV stations.
The protest organizers reportedly asked attendees to “stay safe” and walk home in groups.
