Video of Sakaja-linked goons emerges as protest turns deadly

A widely shared video showing club-wielding men chanting in support of Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja during Tuesday’s protests has raised fresh questions over alleged state-backed goon involvement in public demonstrations.

The video, recorded outside City Hall, captures the men shouting “Sakaja tumelinda jiji,” Swahili word for “Sakaja, we have defended the city,” as they walk past undisturbed.

The footage surfaced as protests demanding justice for Albert Ojwang and the resignation of Deputy Inspector General of Police Eliud Lagat turned chaotic in Nairobi’s central business district.

As the march escalated, a man was shot dead by police. A separate video shows two uniformed officers confronting a vendor reportedly selling face masks.

They briefly corner and assault him before one opens fire at close range. The man collapses, masks still clutched in his hand. The officers walk away, their faces covered.

The victim’s identity was not immediately confirmed. Protesters carried his body to the Bliss Medical Centre.

Elsewhere in the city, goons vandalised infrastructure and set at least two vehicles ablaze near the Kenya Cinema building. Signposts and dustbins were also destroyed, while some businesses shut to avoid losses.

Police responded by deploying anti-riot units, the General Service Unit, plainclothes officers and a surveillance helicopter to quell the unrest.

The National Police Service had not released a statement on the killing or the conduct of the alleged goons.