Kalonzo: Haiti-type of gangs emerging in Nairobi during protests
Wiper Party leader Kalonzo Musyoka has expressed concern over what he described as a rise in Haiti-style gangsterism infiltrating youth-led demonstrations in Nairobi.
Speaking to international media on Friday morning, July 25, 2025, Kalonzo claimed that recent peaceful protests by young people have been hijacked by organised gangs, leading to increased violence and chaos in the capital.
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“But now, in hindsight, because we have a Haiti-type of gangsterism emerging in Nairobi, Kenyans will be forgiven for thinking that perhaps they sent our police officers for benchmarking,” Kalonzo said, referencing the deployment of Kenyan police to Haiti.
He lamented that the original intent of the demonstrations, which aimed to demand transparency and accountability from the government, had been overshadowed by the actions of criminal elements.
“Because gangs have infiltrated these demonstrations by young people. The last demonstrations, the gangs came heavily against them,” he added.
This comes a month after Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen issued a warning to goons who hijacked the Gen Z-led protests to loot businesses, torch government property, and cause nationwide chaos, declaring that the government is coming for them “hard.”
The protests
Speaking to the media on Thursday, June 26, 2025, after inspecting damaged properties, Murkomen said what started as peaceful demonstrations was quickly overtaken by criminal gangs who unleashed destruction across the country.
“What happened yesterday was not random. It was deliberate, coordinated, and funded. It was premeditated and politically funded,” he stated.
He said the attackers specifically targeted businesses, government facilities, and supporters of the government.
According to the CS, at least 88 police vehicles, 27 national and county government vehicles, and 65 civilian vehicles were destroyed during the unrest.
In a more alarming development, five firearms were stolen from Dagoreti Police Station in Kiambu County.
Murkomen condemned the attacks on small and medium enterprises, stating that the criminals looted kiosks, supermarkets, electronics shops, restaurants, and even banks, leaving a trail of destruction in their wake.
Meanwhile, the Democracy for the Citizens Party (DCP) leader, Rigathi Gachagua, accused Deputy President Kithure Kindiki of orchestrating the chaos witnessed during last month’s anti-government protests.
Speaking in Boston, United States, on July 19, 2025, Gachagua alleged that Kindiki received Ksh60 million from President William Ruto to bankroll a disruptive campaign aimed at discrediting him and his political allies in the Mt. Kenya region.
“They paid goons to cause mayhem and frame us for it so that the public would turn against us. But Kenyans are not blind; they can see through the deception,” Gachagua claimed.
