By Enyichukwu Enemanna
A Kenya presidency official on Sunday announced that the country’s leader, William Ruto has said he was ready for “a conversation” with thousands of young protesters holding a nationwide demonstrations to oppose proposed tax increases.
The anti-tax protesters largely made up of young Kenyans, who are streaming theq demonstrations live have taken to the streets to protest their dissatisfaction over economic policies of President Ruto.
“Our young people have stepped forward to engage on the affairs of their country. They’ve done their democratic duty, to stand and be recognised. I’m proud of them,” Ruto said in quotes shared by presidency spokesman Hussein Mohamed on X, formerly Twitter.
“We’ll have a conversation with you to identify your issues and work together as a nation,” he added, making his first public comments since the protest commenced this week.
Right campaigners have alleged that two people died while dozens of others were injured in Thursday’s demonstrations in the capital Nairobi.
The demonstrations were largely peaceful before police fired tear gas and water cannon at the protesters throughout the day, apparently to disperse them.
The rallies began in Nairobi on Tuesday before spreading nationwide, with protesters calling for a national strike on June 25.
Ruto’s administration has defended the proposed levies as necessary for filling its coffers and cutting reliance on external borrowing.
Heritage Times HT reports that the government had announced the withdrawal of some proposed taxes in this year’s controversial finance bill, including a 16% levy on bread, after a public outcry.
The announcement by MPs came as police struggled to forcefully disperse demonstrators in Nairobi.
Since coming to office September 2022, Ruto has introduced several new and unpopular taxes, seeking to pay up the country’s national debt of nearly $80bn (£63bn).
But critics of the latest proposals fear they will stifle economic growth and lead to job losses.
