Government Spokesperson Isaac Mwaura has linked foreign players to the ongoing anti-Finance Bill 2024 protests.
In a statement on Saturday, June 22, Mwaura claimed powerful international players financing Gen-Z protests against the Finance Bill 2024.
According to Mwaura, those sponsoring the protests are unhappy with President Willia Ruto’s recent stand on international matters.
Mwaura pointed out that Ruto’s recent statement regarding Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is one of the reasons foreign powers were funding the demos
He also claimed Ruto’s efforts to end reliance on the United States dollar as the main currency for international trade were another reason powerful foreign countries were sponsoring the protests.
“Gen Z please listen to me, there are genuine people who are asking genuine questions but there is a group somewhere if I look keenly from afar there could be a foreign hand into this issue,” Mwaura remarked concerning the protests against the Finance Bill.
He noted that Ruto’s vocal stance on climate change and his efforts to unite Africa on this issue might also have drawn international ire.
Referencing the recent El Niño phenomenon and heavy rains in Kenya, Mwaura emphasized that President Ruto would persist in elevating the climate change dialogue on the global stage.
He suggested that certain international players were unsettled by Ruto’s remarks about the impact of the Russian conflict on Kenya, specifically the disruption of wheat imports from Russia.
“The other day he spoke about Russia’s invasion. He stated that it is affecting us even though we cannot receive wheat flour from Russia because we do not produce enough here in Kenya. There are people with problems with that,” Mwaura alleged.
He added that the West was also dissatisfied with Ruto’s advocacy for reducing dependency on the US dollar.
“Also look at the de-dollarisation. If the dollar is strong, it affects our economy negatively. He (Ruto) said we find new finance infrastructure internationally,” Mwaura stated.
Mwaura highlighted the financial disparities faced by African nations, noting that loans from international financial institutions come with significantly higher repayment burdens for developing countries compared to developed nations.
“That makes it extremely difficult to pay those loans. That is why we are in a debt trap. We take 48 per cent of what we collect and pay those people. They would not want us to get out of that slavery,” he asserted.
