A report by Reuters shows that the Kenyan police chief, Japhet Koome, has tendered his resignation. He did so off the heels of very intense criticism from the Kenyans on police conduct during the protest that claimed 39 lives.
The protest which began as an outcry to scrape a newly introduced finance bill morphed into a call for the resignation of the president.
The call for the president’s job is a result of the death toll that resulted from the protest. Prior to the administration’s decision to listen to the people and remove the finance bill, the security officials deployed to contain the protest had killed several of the protesters, sparking a fresh wave of outrage from the protesters.
Said killings had the demonstrators pivoting from denouncing the finance bill to chanting Rutomustgo. As a result, the president has been taking some measures to win back the goodwill of the people.
Ruto dissolves his cabinet
Prior to the police chief’s resignation, the Kenyan president relayed via a television broadcast that he was phasing out his cabinet as well as dismissing the country’s attorney general. He however noted that the deputy president’s office would remain untouched.
“I will immediately engage in extensive consultations across different sectors and political formations and other Kenyans, both in public and private, with the aim of setting up a broad-based government,” the president stated.
“During this process, the operations of government will continue uninterrupted under the guidance of principal secretaries and other relevant officials. I will be announcing additional measures and steps in due course.”
Kenya’s budget deficit is now projected at 4.6% of gross domestic product in the 2024/25 financial year, up from an earlier estimate of 3.3%, Ruto said.