Nairobi Regional Police Commander Issa Mohamud/SCREENGRAB
Police in Nairobi have declared that they will not allow processions or demonstrations in the capital during Tuesday’s Saba Saba Day commemorations.
Police warned that anyone who gathers for protests will be treated as participating in an unlawful assembly.
Nairobi Regional Police Commander Issa Mohamud said security agencies had put in place stringent measures to prevent demonstrators from accessing key government installations, including Parliament Buildings, and warned that vehicles entering the Central Business District (CBD) would be subjected to security checks.
"We do not intend to interfere with the movement of public service vehicles. However, there will be restrictions in some areas, such as around Parliament. We will allow PSV buses into Nairobi city after screening," he said.
"If you gather tomorrow anywhere, we will treat it as unlawful assembly and we will deal with you," Mohamud said.
"There will be restricted areas like Parliament. We do not want intruders to go there."
He added that motorists heading into the city centre should expect heightened security, saying,
"Vehicles will also be checked before they are allowed to go to the Central Business District."
The warning comes despite human rights organisations and civil society groups maintaining that they have complied with the law by formally notifying the National Police Service of their planned peaceful Saba Saba Day demonstrations.
The organisers said the procession is intended to commemorate Saba Saba Day while presenting a petition to Parliament demanding greater police accountability, an end to extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances.
According to the organisers, the march is scheduled to begin at Jeevanjee Gardens before proceeding through the Nairobi CBD to Parliament Buildings.
"Tomorrow, Kenyans from all walks of life will commemorate Saba Saba Day, a historical milestone in the struggle for democracy, constitutionalism and accountable governance," activist Elisha Ochieng said during a press conference.
Lawyer John Maina Ndegwa said the organisers had fulfilled the legal requirement of notifying police in advance.
"We did present that notification last Thursday, so they have it," he said.
The organisers also pledged that the demonstrations would remain peaceful, saying participants would be unarmed and that volunteer marshals had been deployed to help maintain order throughout the march.
At the same time, they raised concerns over the policing of the demonstrations, insisting that officers deployed to manage the protests should not conceal their identities.
The activists said they would not accept police officers wearing face coverings or operating vehicles without registration number plates, arguing that such practices undermine accountability.
They further alleged there were plans to deploy criminal elements to infiltrate the demonstrations and trigger chaos, claims they said should be investigated.
"The law does not allow police officers to attend protests with their faces concealed," the organisers said, urging security agencies to adhere to constitutional standards while policing public assemblies.
Saba Saba Day, observed annually on July 7, commemorates the
pro-democracy movement that pushed for the reintroduction of multiparty
democracy in Kenya in 1990. In recent years, the anniversary has evolved into a
platform for citizens and civil society groups to demand greater
accountability, respect for human rights and good governance.
