The High Court Thursday upheld a decision taken by defense Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale and Parliament to deploy military to quell protests against tax increases.
High Court judge Justice Lawrence Mugambi said the continuation of the military in assisting the police is necessary in view of the need to preserve peace and public safety and protect critical infrastructure.
“Given the eruption and loss of control of police during the demonstrations, necessitating deployment of KDF which endangered life and property, the invocation of article 241(b) was properly invoked in the circumstances,” he said.
The judge said even though the intervention was justified, it is clear that the public has not been fully appraised to the extent of the military involvement.
The ruling was made following a petition filed by the Law Society of Kenya (LSK).
However, in its ruling on Thursday evening, the High Court gave the government two days to state the scope, duration and areas of military intervention.
LSK challenged the gazette notice published by Defence Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale deploying KDF to assist the police in suppressing violent protests in various parts of the country.
On Tuesday night Duale issued a gazette notice declaring a national security emergency paving way for the deployment of KDF to quell the ongoing mass protests against the Finance Bill, 2024.
This was after the police who had been deployed to restore law and order especially in Nairobi, were overwhelmed by the protesters who managed to storm into the National Assembly where they caused havoc and also burnt City Hall and vandalised the Supreme Court.
On Thursday, KDF soldiers patrolled the streets of Nairobi and Nakuru as protesters engaged anti-riot police officers in running battles for the better part of the day.
The Attorney-General Justin Muturi, defended the deployment on grounds that the law was followed in the publication of the gazette notice, but the LSK disagrees.
LSK argued that deployment of the military sends an alarming and chilling message to Kenyans who would be affected.
The lawyers’ body argues that the country may be receding into a police state, or that the government is at war with its people.
LSK president Faith Odhiambo submitted that there was no state of emergency or critical security situation in the country to justify deployment of KDF, adding that regular police can deal with the situation as they are trained to deal with civilians.