Have we moved on too fast? Lessons Kenya risks forgetting before 2027

Gen Z protest aftermath destruction in Nairobi CBD on June 26, 2025. [Boniface Okendo, Standard]

Moving on from a setback or situation swiftly can be a personal strength, but in nation-building, it can also be a weakness. As a nation just two years from a General Election, we must bring historical facts that have been swept under the carpet back to the fore. These facts must inform our actions, lest we lose our nation completely in 2027. If we fail to learn from the Gen-Z-led demonstrations—the chaos, the violence, and the accompanying tragic deaths and injuries—then we have already chosen to sink the nation we cherish.

The chaotic scenes being witnessed in Tanzania are symptomatic of a region that is not at ease. There is growing cross-border empathy for the unique challenges each East African nation faces. In Uganda, the victimisation of opposition leader Kizza Besigye attracted lawyers and activists from as far as Kenya, led by PLP leader Martha Karua.