There was drama in Nairobi on Tuesday as an attempt by police to arrest human rights activists who had gathered together with families of the victims of alleged police abductions at President William Ruto’s office failed.
The drama ensued at the entrance Harambee House where the Office of the President is located when police handcuffed activists Boniface Mwangi, Hussein Khalid and Hanifa Adan in a bid to forcefully take them to a police van that was waiting.
According to Sema Ukweli, a human rights media organisation, Mwangi alongside other protesters was en route to President William Ruto’s office to deliver a petition for missing persons in the country.
However, during the march, some officers attempted to arrest the activists.
“The peaceful assembly was violently disrupted when a group of masked men appeared out of nowhere and attempted to forcefully abduct activist Boniface Mwangi,” read the statement in part.
“They were thwarted by the crowd, however, although Fredrick Onjiro of Haki Africa was driven away in a police van.”
According to the organisation, the police did not explain why they wanted to arrest the activist.
The shocked families of the abducted victims who accompanied the activists wailed as the commotion ensued before the police allowed the activists entry into the offices.
“We will resist any attempts to have us arrested. We will also not allow police officers with masks on their faces to arrest us,” Mwangi shouted as police tried to pull him forcefully from the ground.
Police have heightened security around the Office of the President following the activists’ decision to petition Ruto on the disappearance of Kenyans following recent protests against the government.
