A Linda Mwananchi team was attacked in Migori on Saturday after tear gas was discharged in the middle of a rally.
What followed was a running battle as the team condemned what it described as yet another attempt on their lives, insisting they would not back down.
The incident came even after president William Ruto vowed to tackle goons who raid political meetings.
Ruto noted that increased goon activity in the country’s political space posed a serious threat to national security, months to the General Election.
The President tasked law enforcers with ensuring Kenyans’ fundamental rights and freedoms, as enshrined in the Constitution, are protected, especially those touching on freedom of expression.
challenged the service to not only go after those sent to disrupt political activities but also those facilitating them.
“No politician is entitled to a political militia. No candidate has the right to intimidate citizens. No political objective can justify violence,” Ruto stated.
Warning that the continued misuse of youthful Kenyans to perpetrate violence was increasingly becoming a threat to national security ahead of the General Election, President Ruto reminded political leaders that their activities were being closely monitored.
“Politically sponsored violence has no space in our democracy. The National Police Service and all other security agencies should therefore take firm, lawful and impartial action against anyone who finances, organises, incites or perpetrates political violence,” Ruto stated.
The Head of State, who, alongside senior officials in his administration, has been accused of facilitating violence against his opponents, also sounded a warning to police officers deployed to maintain order.
“You must neither criminalise legitimate dissent nor excuse violence committed under the cover of politics. We must secure the election without compromising the democracy we are securing,” Ruto stated.
But that did not stop the attack as a car in the team led by Siaya Governor James Orengo was torched in the chaos.
Property was destroyed as goons that had been hired struck on Saturday evening.
Scenes witnessed on Saturday during a Linda Mwananchi rally in Migori Town showed Governor Orengo and his entourage addressing supporters before chaos erupted.
A white Land Cruiser Lexus is seen snaking through a cloud of tear gas as Governor Orengo and his team are quickly whisked away from the chaotic scenes.
Their supporters on the road are also seen scampering for safety, in what was yet another reported attack on the Linda Mwananchi convoy in Nyanza.
Orengo, who addressed supporters in a local dialect, condemned the attack, insisting that Linda Mwananchi would remain strong.
In Awendo, another vehicle that was part of the Linda Mwananchi convoy was torched by unknown goons, sparking further questions over the series of attacks being witnessed.
Former Law Society of Kenya president Faith Odhiambo condemned the attack.
“What started with senseless interruption of a peaceful meeting by police officers culminated in a brazen attack by thugs who torched one of the cars in the entourage and sprayed it with bullets. This level of violence is not only unacceptable, it is a precursor to a state of insecurity that the government will be unable to contain if it is left unchecked,” she said in a statement.
She added democratic freedoms and the expression thereof cannot be used as an excuse to weaponize organised crime against people of different political persuasion.
“This intolerance, especially when it is sanctioned, supported and defended by political leaders, signals a worrying trend that our security agencies seem both unprepared for and disinterested in resolving. Failure to act now in response to this national security crisis is an abdication of constitutional duty which is untenable. We demand that those charged with the security and safety of our country do their work before it is too late.”
The incident came as the Wiper Patriotic Front team pitched camp in Taita Taveta for a charm offensive campaign, where they rallied Kenyans to vote out Ruto in the 2027 polls.
Led by Wiper Patriotic Front Party leader Kalonzo Musyoka, DAP-K leader Eugene Wamalwa and Democratic Party leader Justin Muturi, the leaders used Saturday’s event to respond to Kenya Kwanza’s defence of the electoral body after DCP party leader Rigathi Gachagua raised concerns over alleged plans to rig the 2027 elections.
Wamalwa also criticised the response from Kenya Kwanza leaders to Gachagua’s claims regarding the IEBC election technology tender.
He said they had called for a roundtable with the Independent Eletoral and Boundaries Commission to discuss the preparations for the polls.
Muturi called on Chief Justice Martha Koome to activate the Judiciary’s Elections Committee to ensure electoral disputes are handled expeditiously.
“I want to tell the Chief Justice there is a plot by some people in State House to disrupt elections. She should activate Elections Committee to ensure all cases related to 2027 elections are given priority,” Muturi noted.
Former Cabinet Secretary Aisha Jumwa defended Kalonzo against criticism over his political record.
The opposition leaders also criticised the President over land-related matters, accusing him of being responsible for what they described as land grabbing across the country.
The team maintained that they would work towards ensuring Ruto becomes a one-term President.
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