CORD supporters paralysed transport along the Kisumu-Kakamega highway today Monday morning after youths protesting against IEBC blocked the road at Kibuye market. There were attempts at protest in Nairobi where protesters tried to block Museum Hill road but were repulsed by police. Reports indicate that cars have been burnt in Kisumu city.
As this was happening High Court declined to stop CORD demonstrations. Justice Joseph Onguto said the right to protest in protected by the constitution. He ordered the Inspector General of Police Joseph Boinnet to ensure law and order is maintained during the demonstrations
The judge made the ruling in an application filed by Jubilee MPs Ferdinand Waititu, Moses Kuria, Alice Ng’ang’a and Kimani Ichungwa. The MPs wanted the court to stop Cord from holding its weekly protests.
Similar protests were witnessed in Migori County, where youths blocked all major roads in Migori Town and lit bonfires in protests against the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC).
In Kisumu, huge bonfires were set up in Kondele and Kibuye estates, in an attempt to keep off anti-riot police. And unlike in previous protests, the youths yesterday concentrated their activities in Manyatta, Obunga and Nyalenda estates.
Supermarkets and schools remained closed ahead of the protests. The protesters were defying an order by the police declaring the demos illegal.
In the Migori protests, roads were blocked with boulders and burning tyres, interrupting the flow of traffic. Matatus and private cars were kept off the roads as their owners feared they could be torched by the demonstrators, who poured into the streets from as early as 6am.
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Shops, offices and banks were closed as security officers watched the protests from a distance. All pedestrians using the affected roads were forced to carry green twigs in order to be allowed to pass through the roadblocks mounted by the protesters.
The Migori open-air market, just like the main streets, remained deserted.
Roads leading to the county government headquarters were blocked, with many county and national government workers opting to remain at home.
At the same time, a number of school heads in Kisumu County sent messages to parents and guardians advising them not to send their children to school.
Businesses along Oginga Odinga Street were closed due to fear of looting by the demonstrators. Traders said they opted to stay at home as a security measure. “Last time the police raided shops and started beating people. They also destroyed our goods,” said Ms Getrude Atieno, who runs a business on the street.
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