President William Ruto has for the second time in a week appealed to young people to act responsibly and exercise restraint as families of victims of the June 25, 2024 protests prepare to hold remembrance marches across the country on Thursday.
The Head of State made the appeal on Sunday saying that while young people are free to express themselves, they must also appreciate the responsibility that comes with that freedom.
“Yours is a free country. You have the freedom to dream, the freedom to speak, and the freedom to become all that you can be. But freedom and responsibility are inseparable; you cannot claim one and reject the other. Freedom without responsibility is not freedom. It is recklessness,” President Ruto said.
He spoke during the 95th St John Ambulance annual parade and inspection ceremony at State House, Nairobi.
The President noted that the country had in recent weeks been mourning the loss of young lives in places where children should have been safest and urged the youth to draw lessons from those tragedies.
“Every choice carries a consequence. Some consequences are temporary, others are permanent. They can alter the course of your life, damage your reputation, stain your record, and leave a burden on your conscience that you will carry for years to come,” he said.
Addressing young people directly, President Ruto added: “Character is not forged in life’s grand moments alone; it is shaped by the choices you make every day when you are angry, when no one is watching, when it is easier to follow the crowd, and when your conscience is calling you to stand apart from it.”
“Be the generation that understands that every action matters, every choice counts, and every choice carries consequences. Be the generation that leaves Kenya safer, kinder and stronger than it found it,” he said.
The President’s remarks come just days before the country marks the second anniversary of the June 25, 2024 anti-Finance Bill protests, which turned deadly and left dozens of people dead and injured.
According to the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR), at least 50 people were killed during the protests between June 18 and July 16, 2024, while many others were injured. Human rights groups, however, have maintained that the actual death toll may have been higher.
Subsequent demonstrations across the country have also turned violent, resulting in deaths, injuries and destruction of property.
“The easiest thing in the world is to follow the crowd. The hardest thing is to stand apart from it. Yet that is where character is revealed in the willingness to make the right decision, even when it is unpopular,” President Ruto said.
“And recklessness always has a cost. Sometimes the person who pays that price is you; sometimes it is someone entirely innocent,” he added.
The commemoration of victims of the June 25, 2024 protests is scheduled for Thursday, with families of those who died pushing for their loved ones to be recognised as heroes.
Organisers have planned marches in several parts of the country and urged the police to provide security during the events.
Last week, the National Police Service gave conditional approval for the demonstrations but warned that it would not tolerate any disruption of public order.
Police also expressed concern over calls by some organisers urging Kenyans to stay at home in solidarity with protesters, describing the move as suspicious.
Separately, Deputy President Kithure Kindiki has said the government will not entertain any attempts to exploit the planned opposition protests to loot and destroy property saying stern action will be taken against those who will break the law.
The DP said there will be no room for law breakers to perpetrate crimes in the name of demonstrations saying the Constitution protects everyone including those not participating.
“On Thursday, there will be no room for monkey business anywhere in the republic of Kenya. No one will threaten us from protecting Kenyans who are busy in their businesses, travelling or going about their trade away from the demonstrations,” DP said.
He spoke on Sunday when he attended an interdenominational church service and presided over a fundraiser for 19 churches at Kapsang in Soy Constituency, Uasin Gishu County.
Prof Kindiki, accused the planners of hanging on lies and falsehoods which had already been debunked during parliamentary debates and other discourses on the Finance Bill, 2026.
He affirmed that the Bill as adopted by Parliament does not raise any taxes and the government has no intention of burdening Kenyans with more taxes.
