Kisumu Residents defy Matiangi, hold peaceful protests within City Center.

 Kisumu Governor Prof. Anyang Nyong’o with residents who peacefully demonstrated up to the City Center defying Acting Interior Secretary Fred Matiangi’s recent ban on demonstrations within the Central Business District of Nairobi, Kisumu and Mombasa-Photo By Dickson Odhiambo.

By Dickson Odhiambo.

October 16, 2017.

Kisumu Residents defy Matiangi, hold peaceful protests within City Center.

Hundreds of Kisumu County residents have today defied Acting Interior Secretary Fred Matiangi’s recent ban on demonstrations within the Central Business District of Nairobi, Kisumu and Mombasa as the Anti-IEBC demonstrations expected to be held on a daily basis from today.

The protestors who mainly carried placards and twigs matched from Kondele to the City Center without engaging in any single destruction of property.

ODM Youth ensured that today’s demo is a peaceful one by making sure that no one destroyed property or engaged themselves in acts of lawlessness.

Led by Kisumu County Governor Prof. Anyang Nyong’o,his deputy Dr. Mathew Owili, Market/Mlimani ward Rep Seth Ochieng Kanga and his fellow MCAs within  the county,  the protestors were really organized and even those who were trying to misbehave were not given any chance to do so.

They chanted slogans of Chiloba must and No reforms No elections as they danced peacefully from Kondele to the City Center then finally to the Nyanza IEBC Regional offices next to Kisumu State Lodge.

“We are now within the CBD of Kisumu and very much peaceful," they said.

Kisumu County Governor who addressed a mammoth crowd at the Gate of the IEBC offices urged the residents to hold peaceful demonstrations without destroying or stealing someone’s property.

Nyong’o said peaceful demonstration is a constitutional right which must be respected by those law enforcement agencies. 

“I want to state it here that peaceful demonstration is a constitutional right which must be respected by law enforcement agencies so long as the demos are held peacefully without destroying property as well without engaging in any acts of lawlessness,” Nyong’o said.

He has urged the anti-riot police not to use live bullets while trying to quell the demonstrations, adding that the police should surely protect lives and property of the citizens.

Nyong’o later again led the peaceful demonstrators to Kondele area where he was to address them and thanked them for being peaceful.

“Even Baba is very happy wherever he is when he gets it that you have held a peaceful anti-IEBC demonstrations within Kisumu and any other parts of the country where the same demos are ongoing,” he added.

Market/Mlimani ward Representative Seth Ochieng Kanga has urged the residents of Kisumu not to be contracted by the IEBC as polling clerks; Presiding Officers and Deputy Presiding officers for there will be no elections on the 26 of October .

He has asked the residents not to accept such offers from the Electoral body until the much needed electoral reforms are carried out as demanded by Nasa Leader Raila Odinga who has since pulled out of the repeat Presidential polls.

“I want to ask our people not to accept any offer by IEBC to be polling clerks, Presiding and Deputy Presiding officers  because there will be no elections on October 26 this  year,” Kanga said.

ENDS: