Murkomen claims protests are cover for looting and organised crime
Written by Inka FM on 21 April 2026
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen has claimed that recent public protests across the country have been infiltrated by criminal elements, turning what should be lawful demonstrations into organised acts of looting and destruction.
Speaking before the National Assembly’s Departmental Committee on Administration and Internal Security on Tuesday, April 21, 2026, Murkomen claimed that security agencies have observed a troubling pattern where protests are increasingly being used as a cover for criminal activity.
Murkomen told lawmakers that demonstrations witnessed in recent years, particularly in 2024 and 2025, have deviated from their intended purpose of peaceful civic expression.
According to the CS, areas including Nyandarua, Kiambu, Murang’a, Kirinyaga, Meru, Kitengela, Nairobi, and Machakos have seen protests that he described as “mobilisations of gangs, thieves and robbers”.
“When we hear public protests, when the inspector general of police and the security team hear that there will be a public protest, like it happened in 2024 and 2025, it is no longer a civilised protest. It is actually a mobilisation of gangs, thieves and robbers,” Murkomen said.
“The cases that we saw in Nyandarua, Kiambu, Kikuyu, Murang’a, Kirinyaga, Meru, Kitengela, Nairobi and Machakos, the Nairobi metropolitan area and the counties in the central region are now becoming an epicentre of protests that are organised with gangs, with criminals and with robbers, so when you hear protests will happen, you know supermarkets will be targeted, shops are being targeted, and security installations are being targeted.”
He argued that such incidents undermine the constitutional right to protest and instead point to a coordinated effort by criminal networks.
Political activities
The Interior CS further linked the purported infiltration of protests to political activities, accusing some leaders of fuelling unrest for their own interests.
Murkomen claimed that the organisation of such protests is no longer purely citizen-driven but influenced by political actors, a move he said compromises public safety and stability.
“It has absolutely nothing to do with exercising political rights. And this is attributed directly to the political activities of leaders,” he said.
Planned Tuesday protests
His remarks come amid heightened tensions in the country, with youth-led protests being planned over the high cost of living and rising fuel prices.
However, the protests that were planned for Tuesday, April 21, 2026, did not take off.
The government has in recent weeks faced mounting criticism over economic pressures, with many Kenyans taking to the streets to demand relief measures.
There has been a rising public dissatisfaction over the high cost of living, particularly fuel prices, which have sparked planned demonstrations led largely by young people.
As Kenyans plan to take to the streets, former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has called for restraint from security agencies.
The young people have vowed to take to the streets over the rising fuel prices and cost-of-living concerns.
Speaking during an interview with K24 TV on Monday, April 20, 2026, Gachagua said that young people have a constitutional right to peaceful protest and urged government officials to avoid excessive force during the anticipated demonstrations.
