June 25, 2024 will go down in history as one of the biggest protests in Kenya.
A little past 4.00 p.m in the Central Business District of Nairobi city at Mama Ngina Street.
Angry Kenyan youth had been occupying the entire street and every uptown city corner protesting. They had been chanting amidst \ teargas. They had been going head to head with state police officers while covering the events on phone cameras.
News had spread nationwide that protesters stormed parliament, feasted on buffet lunch, and surprisingly stole the mace which is a representation of parliament’s authority. Symbolically, people had raided the power of the parliament. From these protests, Kenyans proved that they had taken back their power. I am sure that this is crucial for the future of the Kenyan state.
Now, I am not sure if the mace was real or fake.
I am not sure if the mace has been taken from parliament before.
But, that was very courageous of the youth even despite some losing their lives.
Anyhow, at the time of writing this, Kenya is currently facing one of the deadliest enemies it will ever face. This enemy is on a mission to undermine the liberty and freedom for each of us and our future generations. We have all seen in recent weeks a wave of nationwide protest led by GenZ and millennials fighting this enemy.
What’s the name of the enemy? Finance Bill of 2024.
Innocent lives have been lost and businesses affected just because a section of Kenyan members of parliament who were chosen by the people decided to pass and vote YES for the bill. And even though the president conceded and decided not to sign the bill, many Kenyans are still pushing for more changes to the way the government is conducting the country’s business.
On a personal note, I was there on the 25th of June at the Nairobi city smoke show as police threw teargas and fired shots in the air. I take pride in the fact that my peaceful participation bore fruits and that the bill was eventually not signed. I was so happy to hear the president conceding, lord!
Those who know me understand that I do not usually care about mass action especially towards bureaucratic institutions like the government. I don’t even take part in cheap political discussions because I believe it weakens the mind.
But yo! This time round I had to take part in mass action! My action was inspired by people like Amerix who have been foundational in educating the youth and the public at large towards individual development for a better society. In this society, we need people like Amerix.
Anyway, I must say I have been impressed by the fearlessness and determination of fellow youth in defense of a free society. Because I fully understand that the proposals in the Finance Bill of 2024 were going to enslave us and worsen our lives as humans living in Kenya.
I don’t want to go about discussing the bill’s proposals and opinions, but I have a short message that I want to pass in this writing.
As I write this now, I am calling for more youth to realize that our future lies in our hands. We must speak up, protest and engage. We cannot allow hungry politicians to choose and design our future.
I am writing to promote unity. It is really inspiring to see how Gen Z and Millennials have united while disregarding tribal, ethnic and socio-economic differences. Most importantly, I am writing to call for and to promote individual change.
Let us train our hearts and minds towards virtue and goodness. Let each one of us be the change we desire to see. Like, we want a better economy and financially accountable leaders, but what are we doing to improve our own finances ? That’s a big question to meditate upon. Remember what Lil Wayne once said? “And I heard change starts with the man in the mirror.”
As a millennial participant and observer, I am so proud of us for participating in the historic fight on 25th of June. Some of my friends and family had been calling me, advising me to not take part in protests. I want them to know that if we live in fear and avoid protesting and engaging in civil disobedience, we are never going to enjoy our lives .
