Families of fallen protesters cry for justice after viewing bodies

Two weeks ago, Reagan Omondi visited his father, George Akello, in Kibera slums, Nairobi County, but unlike the other days, he was in the company of a pastor.

He introduced him as the lead preacher of their Church, and Akello was elated that his son was taking the right direction in life.

But as fate would have it, Omondi, aged 23, was shot twice along Ngong on Wednesday during the first anniversary of Gen Z protests.

On the fateful morning, Omondi was supposed to accompany his elder brother to Kiambu road for an errand, but they agreed that he should go back home.

Omondi who lived with his brother in Kibera did not make it back home as he was caught up in the demonstrations that had rocked parts of the country.

"He was supposed to accompany his brother to Kiambu road where he works because he was training him how to fix floor tiles,” Akello said after viewing the son's body at City Mortuary on Friday.

Adding that "That day we received information that he was among those who shot along Ngong Road; he sustained gunshot wounds on the arm and leg,"

According to the father, Omondi was rushed to Kibera Level 4 hospital for treatment on Wednesday by his friends and he succumbed to his injuries on Thursday night.

The family was notified of the death via posts on social media by his friends and they converged at the facility where he was being treated.

Akello said that his son’s killers shot him in the arm and leg.

The father of five could not hide his emotions while addressing journalists at the Nairobi Funeral Home shortly after viewing his body.

“All I want is justice for my son,” he said.

He called on President William Ruto to listen to the youths and find a common ground with them on the issues they raise and how to address them.

Akello now want the government that he says killed his son to help ferry his body to his Karachuonyo home where they intend to lay him to rest.

Vocal Africa’s Hussein Khalid condemned the killing terming it senseless since Omondi was on his way home.

“These bullets that are being used to kill youths is now too much,” said Khalid.

He said going by Akello’s age who is also sickly, he should have been enjoying the fruits of bringing up Omondi but he will instead burry him.

“We are telling the government enough is enough, let us make sure we get justice for the young me who have been killed.”

He cautioned killer cops saying that assurances by Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen that he would defend them in case they are sued are just empty promises.

“We are telling Murkomen that a day will come when he will be held to account for his time in office.”

His comments came a day after the CS gave police a shoot to kill order after several police stations around the country were attacked during the demos.

Murkomen while speaking at the Kikuyu Police Station which was among those attacked said that the order to shoot people dead while defending themselves and police stations was from above.

He said that post mortem will be performed on the six bodies on Monday.

On Friday, grief-stricken families shift their focus from saving lives to demanding justice for those who died fighting what they called government excesses.

While most of the casualties brought in bore gunshot wounds, 20-year-old Moses Mwangi’s case stood out. Mwangi, a street dweller, had severe facial injuries—his face swollen and bruised, consistent with a beating. A burn mark scarred the back of his left shoulder.

Hawa Wangeci, one of a dozen friends who identified Mwangi’s body on Thursday, described him as a young father trying to survive life on the streets. Mwangi leaves behind a two-year-old child and a wife who is eight months pregnant.

“This is not how I imagined he would leave me,” Wangeci said, tears rolling down her cheeks. “I got reports that he was beaten around OTC, but I didn’t believe it. When he didn’t show up that evening, we—the street family—began checking hospitals. That’s when we ended up here at City Mortuary.”

Wangeci said she they grew up together on Nairobi’s streets and surviving by running errands for traders in Gikomba market. 

“Us who live in the streets have no one to defend us, we have no one to speak for us and I fear if Mose will get any justice at all, who ever beat him up that bad needs to be held accountable. I wonder why this government is killing young people. Who will vote for you when all youths are dead,” she agonised.

Mwangi’s death now joins a growing list of lives lost during the protests. Among them is 17-year-old Ian Opango from Ongata Rongai.

Opango, a welder and the sole breadwinner for his household, was allegedly shot just below his right eye, with the bullet exiting through the back of his head.

His aunt, Fatuma Makokha, with whom he lived, was inconsolable after identifying his body.

Makokha said she only realized her nephew had died after seeing photos circulating online.

“When I left the house in the morning, I asked him not to go for the protests, and he agreed,” she said. “But when I came back at around 3pm, he was missing. I searched the protest area but couldn’t find him. Later, I saw a photo of his body online and recognized the clothes he was wearing.”

By Thursday afternoon, five bodies had been officially confirmed at the City Mortuary as protest victims, with more families still trickling in for identification.

[Pkemoi Ngenoh, Fred Kagonye and Lewis Nyaundi]