In a dramatic turn of events, mass protests broke out in Siakago, Mbeere North, on Tuesday. Residents along with traders took to the streets expressing their anger over the perennial poor service delivery and lack of development.
This protest became one of the biggest public demonstrations in the constituency for years. The protests have forcefully brought out the dissatisfaction with both local and county authorities and attracted the attention of the public, and the politicians’ tensions in the region have been heightened.
The protest started very early in the morning and turned out to be a gathering of hundreds of locals: the business people, motorbike operators, and common folks. They all came together at Siakago Market to tell the authorities what they thought about the years of neglect, poor public services, and inaction in respect of infrastructure needs.
The protestors announced their demands for an instant response and blamed the government for failing to keep its promises with regard to development, including repair of roads, installation of proper street lights, waste management, and provision of amenities that would ensure safety and stimulate commerce.
One of the traders present at the market stated that the demonstrations were not politically driven but rather resulted from the “exhaustion and broken promises’’ after long-standing neglect by the county authorities. The residents cited bad roads as the main problem causing loss of business, and the situation was aggravated by frequent insecurity due to inadequate lighting at night and poor sanitation services that pose health risks and are therefore not conducive to investment in the area.
In the protest, some went the extra mile; some demonstrators threatened to stop making tax and revenue payments to Embu County unless the authorities, after direct negotiations with them, made a commitment to progressive changes. This move signals a rising tendency to confront the authorities and demand that the elected representatives be accountable.
The protest started with a bang and was followed by calls from the community for dialogue and quick actions from the county administration to the fullest. Engagement of officials continued to be limited when the report was made, resulting in a situation where it was not clear if the authorities would either grant the protesters’ demands or allow the situation to deteriorate further.
This loud and clear voice of the people is a sign of the more significant discontentment across the nation with the quality of services offered in the local authorities’ areas due to the fact that the citizens are demanding more and more the three main things: transparency, accountability, and minor but real improvements in their living conditions.
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