- There is no EXIT sign for the Gen Zs who have steered the conversation and protests on the finance bill passing this week as further calls to demonstrate continued into the 20th of June across various city centers in the nation.
- Gen Zs have been at the forefront in the march for greater transparency and democracy over the past week, using their technological suave to sway more and more of their counterparts towards this cause.
- Even as the conversation receives both sarcastic and serious connotations in somewhat equal measures, the attitude towards the finance bill remains unchanged. WE WANT IT OUT.
There is no EXIT sign for the Gen Zs who have steered the conversation and protests on the Finance Bill passing this week as further calls to demonstrate continued into the 20th of June across various city centers in the nation.
Mombasa, Nakuru, Eldoret, Kisumu and other cities became the newest showgrounds for what is unfolding, as citizens take to the streets demanding their respective members of Parliament to unite and reject the 2024 Finance Bill in its entirety.
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Speaking at the popular Jeff Koinange Live programme on Citizen television, senior counsel Paul Mwangi reinstated that “the call is not about amending the Finance Bill. It’s about rejecting it.” A statement reiterated by fellow activist Wanjira Wanjiru who explained that this is a people’s-led initiative to see elected officials own up to their civic duties.
Gen Zs have been at the forefront in the march for greater transparency and democracy over the past week, using their technological suave to sway more and more of their counterparts towards this cause.
As the #RejectFinanceBill2024 gains further momentum, becoming the most popular Kenyan hashtag and garnering over two million tweets and posts on X, several related hashtags such as #OccupyEldoret, #OccupyBunge2024, #OccupyNanyuki and #OccupyKisumu have cropped up in the past few days inflating Kenyans’ vitality on the subject.
These are all meant to rally fellow city dwellers to come out in droves in opposition of the bill.
Stern government critic and Budget and Appropriation Committee member, Babu Owino, equated the protests to the Arab spring and the American revolution, terming Gen Zs and Millennials as the 3rd liberation force.
He has been a crucial voice in the opposition party arguing that the propositions in the Finance Bill 2024 will disproportionately impact the common mwananchi.
In the panel interview on JKL, he called out the Kenya Kwanza government for failing the people of Kenya in living up to its promises and cited the bill as ‘Budgeted Corruption’ where the government is keen to burden Kenyans with more taxes to fund personal endeavors and allocate huge sums of money to offices that do not exist.
This being one of the causes of the angst in many Kenyans who are all but fed up with the mishandling and mismanagement of public resources by government officials.
Even as the ongoing peaceful protests are met with violence by the police with mass arrests of over 200 people, some of them seasoned journalists and veteran activists, these young Kenyans have received national and international coverage with many in the political class and media outlets lauding their sheer passion and dedication to stand up and demand accountability.
Former Chief Justice Willy Mutunga and opposition leader Raila Odinga have also taken to social media to commend the activism spirit exuded by the young people.
‘The stakes are high and we are not gambling with our future’. This is the collective message by the Gen Zs. It is about interrogating the management of resources, transparency in government expenditure and demanding the realization of the fundamental rights of every Kenyan as enshrined in the constitution, better healthcare, security and education.
Comprising over 55% of the general population, the young generation has been instrumental in the new age revolution. Backed by seasoned activists, social media personalities and fellow citizens, the baton has been passed to them as they take the stage in the countrywide protests.
We are #Tribeless. We know no barriers nor divisive political games that have besmirched past protests against oppressive regimes. We are not corrupted on the basis of individual or political differences.
The Finance Bill is a shared concern by all Kenyans and we owe it to our predecessors to make good on what they have done before us. We are ashamed of our government and it is this shame that propels us with passion, passion to secure a future where our generation can survive better than our parents.
“Indeed! What we are witnessing right now was forthcoming. The golden generation has finally risen to the occasion, 80% of Kenyans are under the age of 35. However, due to one reason or the other, 90% of the government politburos are the baby boomers and the geezers. Tear gas and maandamano have been tried and tested and occasionally failed. If need be, the next calculative move should be establishing a Youth Political Party and cleaning up the ness in the next general election,” Philip Emmanuel Mwendwa – Procurement officer at Co-operative bank said in a letter to all Gen Z’s and Millenials.
