Protests against tax increases in Kenya's Finance Bill 2024 began in June 2024 and peaked on 25 June, when protesters breached Parliament after MPs passed the bill and, Reuters reported, police opened fire. President William Ruto declined to sign the bill, MPs deleted all its clauses, and he dismissed his Cabinet. Death counts differ by source, and as of October 2026 few cases had reached court while a state compensation programme was paying victims.
The Finance Bill 2024 never became law. As of 31 October 2026 IPOA reported 62 deaths from the 2024 protests with three cases before court, an inquest into the first Nairobi death awaited a ruling, and the compensation panel reported Ksh1.014 billion paid to 1,083 victims, with claims open until 14 November 2026.
The Finance Bill 2024 was read for the first time in the National Assembly on 13 May and sent to the Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning, which then invited public views on its revenue-raising measures.
Treasury Principal Secretary Chris Kiptoo told the finance committee the government needed more revenue because its capacity to carry more debt was not sustainable. Citizen Digital reported a target of Ksh346.7 billion, while Nation reported Sh302 billion. Nation listed proposals including 16 percent VAT on bread and a 2.5 percent annual motor vehicle tax.
After a meeting of MPs allied to the government chaired by President William Ruto at State House, finance committee chair Kimani Kuria announced that the 16 percent VAT on bread, the motor vehicle tax and the increase in mobile money transfer charges had been dropped. The eco levy was limited to imported finished goods.
The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) dates the start of the demonstrations against the Finance Bill to Tuesday 18 June 2024.
MPs voted 204 to 115 to pass the bill at second reading, The Star reported. The KNCHR said protests took place in 19 counties, more than 105 people were arrested and about 200 were injured in Nairobi and Kisumu. A man was shot dead on Moi Avenue in Nairobi that evening, and witnesses told The Star a plainclothes officer fired. Police said they were investigating.
The National Assembly passed the Finance Bill 2024 at third reading by 195 votes to 106, with three spoilt votes, as announced by Speaker Moses Wetang'ula. The bill then awaited presidential assent.
Shortly after the vote, protesters broke into the parliamentary compound and parts of the building caught fire. Reuters reported that police opened fire, that a Reuters journalist counted at least five bodies outside Parliament, and that a paramedic said more than 50 people were wounded by gunfire.
In a televised address from State House, President Ruto said he would not sign the Finance Bill 2024 and that it would be withdrawn. He proposed talks with young people and a multi-stakeholder engagement within 14 days, and spoke of austerity measures.
Ruling on a petition by the Law Society of Kenya against the deployment of the Kenya Defence Forces after the 25 June events, Justice Lawrence Mugambi declined to order troops back to barracks but directed that the terms and duration of the deployment be gazetted within two days.
At a media roundtable at State House, President Ruto said his records showed 19 people had died and questioned the figure of 24 given by human rights organisations, saying investigations would establish the truth.
President Ruto dismissed all Cabinet Secretaries and Attorney General Justin Muturi, retaining only Prime Cabinet Secretary and Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi. The Office of the Deputy President was not affected.
State House said President Ruto had accepted the resignation of Inspector General of Police Japhet Koome, who Citizen Digital reported had faced criticism over arrests and abductions by police during the protests. Deputy Inspector General Douglas Kanja was named acting Inspector General.
The KNCHR said that since 18 June, 50 people had died, 413 had been injured, 59 had been reported abducted or missing and 682 had been arbitrarily arrested in connection with the protests. It said it had gone to court seeking habeas corpus orders for missing people.
Sitting as a Committee of the Whole House, MPs agreed with the President's reservations and voted to delete all clauses of the Finance Bill 2024, rejecting it in its entirety. Speaker Wetang'ula said there was no bill left to present for assent.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki told a National Assembly committee that 42 people died in the protests between June and August, against a figure of 61 cited by rights groups including Amnesty International. He said 1,208 people had been arrested and that there was no proof police were responsible for 132 people still missing.
The KNCHR said it had recorded 82 cases of abduction or enforced disappearance since June 2024, that 29 of those people were still missing, and that 13 new cases had been reported in the previous three months.
A BBC Africa Eye documentary, Blood Parliament, said analysis of more than 5,000 images identified a police officer and a soldier who opened fire and killed three unarmed protesters at Parliament on 25 June 2024. Government spokesman Isaac Mwaura called the film one-sided. The Kenya Defence Forces said the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) had not asked to examine its personnel.
IPOA said it had registered 60 death cases from the 2024 protests, completed 22 investigations and taken two cases to court, and cited non-cooperation from police officers and witnesses.
The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions said it had received 16 inquiry files from IPOA since June 2024, that three death cases were at the public inquest stage and that no case had proceeded to formal prosecution, Citizen Digital reported. A BBC report the same week said no officers had been charged.
Justice Bahati Mwamuye of the High Court dismissed a petition by the family of a man who died during the 25 June 2024 protests, backed by the Law Society of Kenya, seeking to compel the state to prosecute police officers. He said police had sent their findings to prosecutors, who recommended a public inquest.
Protests marking the anniversary took place in at least 23 counties, the KNCHR said. On the day it reported 8 deaths and over 400 casualties and condemned a Communications Authority directive halting live broadcasts. Two days later it raised its count to 19 deaths and 531 injured.
The KNCHR said the 7 July Saba Saba demonstrations left 31 people dead and 107 injured, with 532 arrests and two enforced disappearances, and called for accountability from police and civilians.
Speaking at a police housing project in Kilimani, Nairobi, President Ruto said police should not kill people who burn property but should shoot them in the leg before they are taken to court, according to Citizen Digital and The Star. He also accused unnamed leaders of financing the violence.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen said 42 people died in the June 25 and Saba Saba protests, 17 and 25 respectively according to police data, that close to 600 were injured including 496 officers, and that nearly 1,500 had been arrested. The KNCHR had counted 19 deaths on 25 June and 31 on Saba Saba, and Citizen Digital reported a later KNCHR count of 38 for Saba Saba. Murkomen said he did not dispute higher KNCHR figures.
President Ruto issued a proclamation establishing a framework to compensate victims of protests and riots, covering civilians and security officers who were harmed or killed. The Standard dates the proclamation 6 August and The Star 8 August.
A gazette notice appointed a panel of experts chaired by Makau Mutua to oversee payouts, with a 120-day mandate. Its members were sworn in on 4 September.
Justice Dennis Magare of the High Court in Kerugoya issued conservatory orders suspending the proclamation and the gazette notice appointing the panel, on a petition challenging the plan. The panel applied to have the orders lifted.
The High Court held that the President had no constitutional authority to set up a body on victims' compensation and that the role belongs to the KNCHR, Citizen Digital and The Standard reported. Reports published on 4 and 5 December described the ruling. A later Citizen Digital report dated it 9 December.
A gazette notice signed by Head of Public Service Felix Koskei gave the Mutua panel an advisory role for six months, according to Citizen Digital, to advise the President on reparations based on a KNCHR report. The panel said it would appeal the High Court judgment while complying with it.
IPOA vice chair Ann Mwangi said the authority had registered 62 deaths from the 2024 protests, 27 from the June 2025 memorial protests and 38 from Saba Saba 2025. Of the 2024 cases, three were before court, three were with prosecutors, 46 were still under investigation, one was under internal legal review and nine had been closed.
The Mutua panel said Sh448.7 million had been paid to 348 verified beneficiaries in the first phase, covering violations from 2013 to 2025, including Sh3 million for each of 115 deaths. The government has set aside Ksh2 billion, Citizen Digital reported.
On the second anniversary, police barricaded roads into central Nairobi and put up barbed wire near Parliament, and many businesses stayed closed. Capital FM reported that families of those killed and opposition leaders laid wreaths on the barbed wire, and families told The Standard that compensation did not replace accountability. No casualty figures were reported in the coverage reviewed.
Prosecutors closed their case in the inquest before magistrate Geoffrey Onsarigo into the man shot dead in Nairobi's central business district on 20 June 2024, after 30 witnesses testified, Capital FM reported. The parties are to file written submissions before the magistrate rules.
The panel said 1,083 victims had received Ksh1.014 billion across all phases, including 139 economic-loss claims and 100 approved claims from uniformed officers. Its term was extended by 90 days from 4 September 2026, and in October it set 14 November 2026 as the deadline for claims.
Kenya's Finance Act 2023 introduced a housing levy of 1.5 percent of gross pay, matched by employers, to fund the government's affordable housing programme. The...
William Ruto chose Rigathi Gachagua as his running mate in 2022, and the pair won the presidency. After a public break in 2024, Parliament impeached and removed Gachagua,...
In 2024 Adani Group companies pursued a 30-year privately initiated proposal to expand and run Jomo Kenyatta International Airport and signed a 30-year, Sh95.68 billion p...
Kenya offered in July 2023 to lead a multinational police mission against armed gangs in Haiti, and the UN Security Council authorized it that October. After a Kenyan cou...
Citizen Digital · citizen.digital
Nation · nation.africa Citizen Digital · citizen.digital Nation · nation.africa
Kenya National Commission on Human Rights · knchr.org Citizen Digital · citizen.digital
Dawn, republishing Reuters · dawn.com
Al Jazeera · aljazeera.com Citizen Digital · citizen.digital
Capital FM · capitalfm.africa Citizen Digital · citizen.digital Citizen Digital · citizen.digital Citizen Digital · citizen.digital Citizen Digital · citizen.digital
Eastleigh Voice · eastleighvoice.co.ke Kenya National Commission on Human Rights · knchr.org
MyJoyOnline, republishing BBC · myjoyonline.com Citizen Digital · citizen.digital Nation · nation.africa Nation · nation.africa Kenya National Commission on Human Rights · knchr.org Kenya National Commission on Human Rights · knchr.org Citizen Digital · citizen.digital Citizen Digital · citizen.digital Citizen Digital · citizen.digital Citizen Digital · citizen.digital Citizen Digital · citizen.digital Citizen Digital · citizen.digital Capital FM · capitalfm.africa
Euronews · euronews.com
Capital FM (via allAfrica) · allafrica.com Citizen Digital · citizen.digital Citizen Digital · citizen.digital Kenya National Commission on Human Rights · knchr.orgLast updated 31 October 2026. Spotted an error? See corrections. Every event links to the record it comes from. Allegations are attributed to whoever made them.