Fallen protester: 'My brother was supposed to graduate in September'
University student Eric Kayoni during the anti-tax protests.
A group of about 15 young people shuffled silently through the corridors of Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH), their hands deep in their pockets.
Their hushed tones and downcast eyes reflected their grief. As they rounded the corner from KNH's main building to the morgue, the path narrowed, forcing them into a single file, one behind the other.
As they approached the entrance to the farewell home, some clung to each other for comfort. One sank onto a nearby rock, tears streaming down her face. A few others just stood there, frozen in thought.
Behind the low half-door of the funeral home lay their loved ones.
Eric Kayoni, a 27-year-old student at the University of Nairobi, was one of the protesters who died during Tuesday's demonstrations against the Finance Bill, which erupted in 35 counties. He was shot in front of parliament.
KNH reported receiving 165 patients with protest-related injuries. Two protesters were pronounced dead on arrival and another died while receiving treatment.
Eric's brother, Fred Siloma, spoke of his loss with deep pain.
"Eric Kayoni was my younger brother. He was due to graduate in September with a bachelor's degree in business administration. He was also a student at KCA University and had just passed the highest level of the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) Section Six.
My brother was out to protest, as were many of his peers - Gen Z and millennials had also joined in to oppose the proposed Finance Bill. And, of course, to defeat the bill.
We were at the previous Mandamano together, but I was unable to join him on Tuesday. After what happened last week, you know, the police brutality, I told him to be safe, to stay safe.
And like every other Kenyan, I believed that the government would protect us. Around 3 pm, I received a frantic phone call from one of my cousins, crying as she shouted Eric's name. She said, 'Erico, Erico...' At that moment I knew something tragic had happened to him, but she couldn't say it.
She had sent me photos of him during the protests, so I knew what he was wearing that day. As I left the office for the city, I scrolled through the various social media platforms. I saw a lot of trending photos of injured protesters. On TikTok, I saw a video showing the aftermath of the shooting. I didn't have to look twice; it was my brother.
When I arrived here at KHN, I described his dress code to the health worker who was attending to me, and she just said, 'I'm sorry, he's here'.
I was able to identify the body and see the extent of the head injury. Judging from the video, he was shot outside the parliament building, inside the stone blocks.
When I see my brother lying there, I am very disappointed in the government and the president. They had a responsibility to protect the people on the streets and they failed.
We come from Narok Constituency, Narok County, so I am accompanied here by some of my friends and his friends, and people are condoling with our relatives back home.
From here we are going to take some time and use social media platforms to call for justice. The perfect justice would be to bring him back to life, but that's impossible. We want them to know that they took away a dream; someone who had a bright future ahead of him."
