Anti-riot police officers have been deployed to quell demonstrations all around the country. Most of them have been deployed in Nairobi while residents of Nairobi clear the town. This move comes after the announced demonstrations scheduled for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.
Roadblocks have been erected in different areas of the city. A cohort of anti-riot police have been seen along Ngong Road and Haile Selassie. In addition to this, the police are patrolling the vehicles that pass by and only allowing those without the intention of destroying property of ferrying the organisers of the protests.
In Nairobi CBD, a section of Nairobi regularly filled with people, and vehicles and bustling with business and commotion, is now void of citizens. Shops remain closed at the risk of being looted during the protests as citizens keep away from the town centre, to avoid being caught in the crossfire.
City roads have also been confirmed as clear as few vehicles have been spotted in transit. In addition to this, few city residents report delayed transport since there are fewer public service vehicles on the roads.
In Kisumu, various roads have been barricaded by youths and bonfires lit in response to the protests. Shops and businesses have also been closed and no PSVs have been spotted on the roads. Police officers have however already been deployed on the roads in key areas of the town.
In Mombasa however, operations seem to be business as usual. Residents and PSVs conduct business as usual without any signs of demonstrations taking place. The same goes for Lamu County.
Three-day demonstrations
Heavy police presence has been witnessed in most parts of Kitengela, Kajiado county as minimal business activity takes place. This comes after the demonstrations that happened last week on Wednesday which included the vandalism of some businesses as well as the Nairobi Expressway.
The police department has gone ahead to even deploy the NYS( National Youth Service) to assist in the quelling and patrolling of the streets.
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The Azimio coalition plans to hold a three-day protest starting today, despite the stern warnings issued by the state officials. On Tuesday, the government withdrew security from the organisers of the demonstrations, inclusive of former First Lady, Mama Ngina.
The government has also ordered the closure of day primary and secondary schools in Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu. This comes after CS Kindiki and CS Machogu released a joint statement stating that there were allegations of planned attacks towards schools in the two counties.
