by Inuka Kenya | Jun 17, 2025 | Press Statements, Stories
Inuka Kenya Ni Sisi! strongly condemns the unlawful and excessive use of force by the National Police Service (NPS) during today’s peaceful protests held in Nairobi and other parts of the country. We are deeply disturbed by credible reports and footage showing officers using live ammunition, tear gas, and batons against unarmed civilians, many of them youth- who were exercising their constitutional right to assemble and express themselves peacefully.
This conduct is a blatant violation of the Constitution of Kenya, 2010. Specifically:
- Article 37 guarantees every person the right to assemble, demonstrate, picket, and present petitions to public authorities, peacefully and unarmed.
- Article 33 upholds the right to freedom of expression.
- Article 238(2)(b) provides that national security must be pursued in compliance with the law, with utmost respect for the rule of law, democracy, human rights, and fundamental freedoms.
- Article 244 obligates the National Police Service to “comply with constitutional standards of human rights and fundamental freedoms” and to “strive for the highest standards of professionalism and discipline.”
The deployment of brute force against protesters,many of whom were peacefully calling for transparency and accountability, is not only unconstitutional but also immoral. Instead of protecting lives and upholding public safety, the police have once again chosen intimidation, violence, and suppression as tools of engagement.
We are further concerned by the NPS’s failure to prevent or arrest individuals identified as “goons” who allegedly infiltrated protests with crude weapons, as mentioned in the police’s own press statement. This selective enforcement raises serious questions about possible complicity or negligence by security agencies. Peaceful protesters were met with violence, while those allegedly armed were left unbothered-why?
We therefore make the following demands:
- Immediate public release of the names of officers involved in today’s shooting and use of force. 2. We demand the arraignment of the shooter officer of the mask seller in court tomorrow.
- Independent investigations by IPOA and KNCHR into police conduct during the protests. 4. We demand the resignation of IG Kanja for gross incompetence
- Full respect for the Constitution and cessation of the use of live rounds and unlawful crowd-control measures.
- We demand the arrest and prosecution of DIG Lagat and all officers involved, in any way, in the murder of Albert Ojwang.
Kenyans are not criminals for demanding justice. Peaceful protest is not a crime. The Constitution is not a suggestion; it is the supreme law of the land.
We remind the police that they serve the people, not power.
Signed by,
Dr. Kawive Wambua
by Inuka Kenya | Jun 10, 2025 | Articles, Stories
This June, as we mark Men’s Mental Health Month, we’re confronted not just with statistics or awareness campaigns, but with the raw, painful truth of a real human story, the kind that forces us to pause and feel. It is the story of Boniface Mwangi, a man known for his courage on the streets, his fire in activism, and now, for a rare, unfiltered vulnerability that deserves our collective attention.
After traveling to Tanzania to stand in solidarity with Tundu Lissu, Boniface was arrested, blindfolded, taken to a secret location, stripped, and sexually assaulted. It’s a sentence that is difficult to write. Even harder to imagine. But Boniface chose to speak it, to name what happened, and in doing so, he broke the silence that imprisons so many men.
In a world where masculinity is still tied to stoicism and silence, where tears are swallowed and trauma buried, Boniface’s voice became an act of defiance — a powerful reminder that strength is not in hiding our wounds, but in daring to reveal them.
Too often, men suffer in the shadows. Fear, shame, and stigma silence them. And when they do speak up, especially about something as taboo as sexual violence, they’re met with disbelief or cruel jokes. But Boniface refused to shrink. He chose honesty over image. Pain over pretence.
His story is not just about what was done to him- it’s about what he chose to do with it. He reminded us that even the most outspoken among us can carry unspeakable pain. That behind every brave face might be a battle no one sees.
This isn’t just about Boniface. It’s about the countless men who’ve never told their stories. Who lie awake at night with panic attacks they don’t know how to name. Who flinches at touch. Who carry trauma as a secret weight, masked by anger or silence. For them, Boniface’s truth matters. It matters deeply.
At the East Africa Wellness Hub and in the Community, we want to do more than applaud him. We want to hold him, and every man like him, in a space of warmth, compassion, and fierce love. We want our community to be a place where men don’t have to be anything but human, where they can tremble and still be strong. Where they can cry and still be seen. Where they can say, “I need help,” and be met with, “We’re here.”
Boniface Mwangi
We see you.
We hear you.
We honor your courage.
Thank you for bravely sharing your pain with us and for challenging repressive and retrogressive cultural norms that silence so many. Your vulnerability is not just a personal act of healing- it is a powerful invitation to others.
You gave us permission to speak.
To feel.
To break.
To heal.
You cracked open a door-not just for yourself, but for countless men who have been afraid to name their pain, to confront it, and to begin the journey toward wholeness.
Your voice is a light. Your pain, shared, becomes a bridge. And your truth makes space for transformation.
We stand with you.
To every man reading this: You don’t have to carry it alone. You deserve to be loved, to be listened to, to be held, not just in moments of joy, but especially in your moments of unraveling. Vulnerability is not your weakness; it is your humanity. And it is beautiful.
This Men’s Mental Health Month, let’s do more than wear blue ribbons or post hashtags. Let’s sit with each other. Let’s ask, “How are you, really?” Let’s create spaces that welcome tears as much as laughter. Let’s teach our sons that strength isn’t in silence, it’s in truth.
And to Boniface: thank you for leading with your heart. May your healing be deep, may your courage ripple wide, and may you always know, you are not alone.
by Inuka Kenya | May 29, 2025 | Press Statements, Stories
We, the Okoa Uchumi Campaign, categorically reject the weaponization of conditional apologies. Kenya is not grieving in speculation. We are grieving that over 60 youth have been shot dead, another approximately 89 citizens abducted and disappeared, journalists and critics surveilled and threatened, neighbours’ sovereignty trampled on in cross-border impunity, budgets looted, priorities distorted and lives stolen.
During his address, President Ruto offered generalized apologies: “To our children, if there is any misstep, we apologize”. This Statement did not acknowledge the government’s actions: instead, the apology was well-framed in broad, non-committal terms without reference to concrete issues or a clear commitment to corrective action.
There is no “if” when the evidence is written in the wounds of a nation. It is unacceptable to pretend to provide redress conditionally. Most recently, we are angered by the government’s failure to defend citizens who are tortured and subjected to gross and inhuman treatment. In a self-preserving move the President of Kenya and the Chair of East Africa Community rushed to offer an apology to Tanzania without demanding accountability. It’s pretentious to believe the same mouth that denied accountability can now deliver justice to grieving Kenyans.
Our Demands Are Clear. Our Constitution Is Clearer!
Under Article 1 of the Constitution, sovereignty belongs to the people. Article 10 requires that governance be anchored in transparency, accountability, and human dignity. Additionally, Article 43 anchors the rights of every Kenyan to access education, health, housing, and social protection.
On the other hand, Chapter Six states that leadership must be based on integrity and public trust while remaining accountable to the people of Kenya. The provisions are not aspirations: they are the law, which is equal to a creed in a religious setting. Therefore, a breach is a betrayal and must be met with serious actions of accountability and responsibility. Therefore, we ask:
- When will justice begin for the youth murdered during peaceful protests while rogue police officers continue to walk free, even as graves remain unmarked and questions unanswered?
- Where is the inquiry into enforced disappearances and abductions?
A Budget of Betrayal
This year’s budget is not a People’s Budget. It cuts funding for our children but balloons spending for the presidency. Clearly, we do not have a revenue problem, but an expenditure problem. As if that is not enough, the budget mocks the sovereignty of the people and offends intergenerational
equity by slashing education, child services, contraceptives, and public health, yet triples budgets for security, surveillance, and elite comfort. It offends our elderly and vulnerable, while feeding a bloated bureaucracy. It again presents a faulty deficit that will cause our Kenyan suppliers to go
without payment due to Ksh.706 billion worth of pending bills and debt repayments for interest and principal amount well above Ksh.1.9 Trillion.
Do we still need to discuss debt restructuring and default despite the government clearly lacking the ability to pay local suppliers, pensioners, and essential services? We are already in debt default. Isn’t this what the basics of insolvency are?
Finally, we want to state that we are tired of apologies served at prayer breakfasts; we do not swallow them. We are ashamed of expensive ceremonies that produce no justice, and ultimately, we are fed up with leaders fluent in the language of faith but deaf to the cries of the people.
Okoa Uchumi Calls For:
- The Government to proactively engage with regional counterparts to ensure the safety, dignity, and protection of all Kenyans. Defend Citizens Across Borders: As Chair of the East African Community, the President must take a firm stance when Kenyan citizens face mistreatment in neighbouring countries.
- A national inquiry into extrajudicial killings, disappearances, and state violence, led by independent actors and victims’ families and immediate redress and reparations for victims of economic and political violence.
- Transparent audits of public debt and identification of odious loans as per the High Court ruling of December 2024, and a people-led renegotiation process.
- Criminal investigations into grand corruption cases in digital infrastructure, housing, health, land, and other captured sectors.
- Restoration of social sector budgets — health, education, child services, contraceptives, and social protection — as non-negotiable economic rights.
- Full implementation of Chapter Six and Article 10, starting with public vetting and lifestyle audits of those in office.
This campaign is not against Kenya. It is for Kenya — a Kenya where leadership is accountable, budgets serve people, and justice is not mumbled in prayers but written into policy, practice, and public life.
For more information email: mulayi.muni@tisa.or.ke
by Inuka Kenya | May 28, 2025 | Opportunities
About Inuka Kenya Ni Sisi:
Inuka Kenya Ni Sisi! is a Kenyan grassroots social movement organization founded in 2009 and registered/incorporated as a Company Limited by Guarantee in 2012. It envisions a peaceful, united and well-governed Kenya with equal economic and social opportunity for all citizens. The organization exists to empower Kenyan citizens to improve their lives and demand good governance as a means to achieve socio-economic growth and equality of opportunity among all Kenyans. It aims to curate a social movement (the Ni Sisi! Movement) that will seek to unite Kenyans to forge a collective identity, drive transformation in leadership and improve maisha — wellbeing — for all Kenyans. To this end, Inuka supports community groups/organizations and collaborates with initiatives at the local, national and regional level to build capacity and linkages for effective collective action. Inuka Kenya Ni Sisi!’s philosophy is underpinned by the concept of “dignity before development” — each individual’s inherent dignity must be upheld at all levels of interaction.
Inuka Kenya has developed three strategic objectives which, together, will form the basis upon which citizens at the local level will find their efforts to take charge of their citizenship and governance processes. As such, the three objectives are the key pillars that will support the creation of a Ni Sisi! Social movement.
These three objectives are:
- Transformative Leadership and Governance Pillar: Strategic Objective 1: To create and curate narratives that seek to transform leadership and governance to be in accord with Utu.
- Individual Agency, Dignity and Livelihoods Pillar: Strategic Objective II: To harness a collective positive and resilient identity in order to build, protect, restore and ensure human dignity for all.
- Movement Building Pillar: Strategic Objective III: To build a social movement of active citizens who take charge of governance at all levels.
About the Project
Inuka Kenya Ni Sisi! Ltd is implementing the Wellness Hub Program—an initiative designed to provide civic actors with safe and supportive spaces to heal, reflect, learn, and grow. Recognising the increasing threats and pressures faced by civic actors, including physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual strain, Inuka aims to establish a dedicated wellness facility. To support this, the organisation seeks to engage a qualified consultant or consultancy firm to assess the viability of identified land parcels for this purpose.
Objectives of the Assignment
The overall objective is to conduct a baseline assessment and due diligence on three proposed land parcels in Narok (10 acres at Esupetei), Nanyuki- Mutirithia (10 acres on Naibor-Endana Rd) and Ndauni (20 acres on Kitui/Kibwezi Rd, next to Ndauni shopping centre) to determine their suitability for establishing a wellness facility. The specific objectives are to:
- Conduct due diligence checks on the legal, environmental, and physical attributes of each parcel of land.
- Assess suitability based on:
- a) Alignment with Inuka’s core wellness mandate for civic catalysts.
- b) Long-term sustainability, including viable business and operational models. c) Cost-effectiveness in acquisition, development and usability considering a limited budget.
- Develop a comprehensive facility development proposal that includes concept design, phased implementation, and sustainability planning.
Deliverables/Expected Outputs
The consultant will work closely with Inuka staff to refine the proposed scope of work prior to commencement of the assignment. The key deliverables aligned with the objectives of the due diligence on the viability of land for a wellness facility are as follows:
Key Deliverables
- Preliminary Assessment Report
Summary of initial observations on the suitability of land in Narok, Nanyuki, and Ndauni, including land use, accessibility, environmental factors, and community context.
- Wellness Landscape Brief
A contextual overview of the state of wellness among civic actors in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda to inform the facility’s design and relevance.
- Due Diligence Report
Verify land ownership and title status, assess zoning, land use restrictions, and permitting requirements, conduct environmental screening, e.g., flood risk, contamination, biodiversity, and review infrastructure availability.
- Development Concept Proposal
A detailed proposal outlining the facility’s concept design, phased implementation plan, budget estimates, and sustainability strategy, including partnerships and revenue options.
Work Plan and Time Schedule
The assignment will commence on Aug 18, 2025 and be completed and a final report submitted by September 30, 2025
Consultant’s Profile
The ideal consultant/firm should demonstrate a multidisciplinary background and the ability to provide a technically sound and contextually relevant assessment.
Minimum Qualifications and Experience:
A relevant degree in Land Economics, Urban and Regional Planning, Environmental Studies, Real Estate, Development Studies, Public Health, Project Management or related fields from a recognised university.
Technical Competencies:
- At least five (5) years of professional experience conducting feasibility studies, land due diligence, or baseline assessments, particularly within Kenya or East Africa. 2. Demonstrated expertise in land use assessment, property valuation, environmental impact analysis, or spatial planning.
- Proven experience in conducting multi-site assessments with a capacity to evaluate geographic, socio-economic, and infrastructural factors.
- Understanding of wellness programming and facility development, particularly models that integrate economic and psychosocial sustainability.
- Knowledge of business modelling and assessing long-term sustainability strategies for development projects.
- Sound understanding of legal and policy frameworks governing land acquisition, ownership, zoning, and development in Kenya.
- Demonstrated capacity to analyse, synthesise, and present data clearly in written and visual formats.
Budget and Logistics
The consultant shall submit the proposed budget with broken-down costs for particular items, for the assignment, including breakdown and justification. Prices quoted should be inclusive of all taxes and delivery costs to the required site (where applicable) and must be in Kenya Shillings and shall remain valid for one hundred and twenty (120) days from the closing date of the tender.
Submission of Proposals / EOI
Based on the above, Inuka is inviting interested parties to submit expressions of interest. Individuals or firms applying shall detail the following:
- Consultants’ profile and capability statement describing the technical capacity and experience of the firm or group of individuals.
- Names and resumes of individual(s) or team members proposed and their roles in the achievement of the assignment.
- Testimonials and sample reports of similar assignments taken in the recent past. 4. Technical Proposal interpretation of the Terms of Reference (TORs).
- A financial proposal clearly demonstrating the costs of the consultancy.
- Detailed implementation plan and time frames.
Inuka reserves the right to accept or reject any tender and may annul the tendering process and reject all tenders at any time prior to contract award without thereby incurring any liability to the affected tenderer or tenderers.
The proposal shall be sent, in soft copy, to the following email: procurement@inukakenya.com
The deadline for submission is July 28th, 2025. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
by Inuka Kenya | May 21, 2025 | Press Statements, Stories
Nairobi, Kenya – May 20, 2025
In light of recent developments in Tanzania—including rising civic unrest, a shrinking of the democratic space, and growing citizen demands for accountability—Inuka Kenya Ni Sisi!, alongside other human rights organizations, expresses deep concern over what appears to be an escalating crackdown on opposition voices ahead of the upcoming general elections in October 2025. The arrest of opposition leaders, coupled with reports of abductions and targeted violence against government critics, has drawn widespread condemnation and raises serious questions about the country’s commitment to democratic principles and the rule of law.
Tundu Lissu, a prominent Tanzanian opposition leader, human rights lawyer, and former Member of Parliament, is widely recognized for his outspoken criticism of government corruption and authoritarianism. In September 2017, Lissu survived an assassination attempt, was exiled and on his return in 2022 he was placed under house arrest when he cited irregularities in the elections. In early 2023, he returned again to Tanzania in what was seen as a test of President Samia Suluhu’s openness to political pluralism. In May 2025, Lissu was charged with treason, prompting outrage from civil society and leading to regional solidarity from Kenyan and Ugandan activists. His court hearing drew attention due to the Tanzanian government’s reaction, including the arrest and deportation of human rights defenders from the region who had gone to observe the court process in solidarity.
The shrinking of civic space and hostility toward human rights defenders—must be understood against a backdrop of Tanzania’s post-independence political legacy, gradual liberalization, and recent resurgence of authoritarianism. Tanzania’s political journey begun with strong one-party rule under President Julius Nyerere, who promoted unity, socialism (Ujamaa), and self-reliance. During this time, opposition was not allowed, and civil society had little freedom. In the 1990s, Tanzania introduced multi-party democracy, allowing opposition parties, independent media, and civil society groups to emerge.
However, the ruling party, CCM, kept a firm hold on power. Under President Magufuli (2015–2021), civic space shrank sharply. Opposition rallies were banned, media was silenced, and civil society was closely monitored. New laws were used to control information and suppress dissent. When President Samia Suluhu Hassan took office in 2021, many hoped for change. She reopened some media and freed political prisoners, but deeper reforms have not happened. President Samia’s recent criticism of regional solidarity efforts shows a growing resistance to external scrutiny and signals a return to one party dictatorship. The silence from the governments of Kenya and Uganda reeks of complicity of both Presidents Yoweri Museveni and William Ruto in the actions of Suluhu. The arrest and deportation of regional civic actors’ signals hostility toward collaboration and solidarity among East African peoples.
Tanzania’s actions undermine the spirit of the East African Community (EAC) and African Union (AU) charters, which commit member states to uphold democracy, human rights, and free movement of people. If left unchecked, this will erode the legitimacy and accountability of these regional frameworks.
We will not remain silent.
We call upon:
- Citizens, youth, and grassroots movements across the continent to stay vigilant, organized, and courageous in defending people-centered leadership and inclusive governance. The youth in Tanzania must especially rise to the occasion of securing a democratic future for their country.
- Civil society across East Africa to raise their collective voice, document civic repression, and stand in principled solidarity with Tanzanian actors working for justice and democratic renewal.
- The media and civil society to amplify the voices of activists like Tundu Lissu (CHADEMA), Zitto Kabwe (ACT-Wazalendo), and Maria Sarungi (feminist advocate)
- The East African Community (EAC) and African Union (AU) to engage the Tanzanian government and uphold the foundational values of democratic governance, human rights, and regional cooperation.
- Development partners and the international community to align diplomatic and financial engagement to Tanzania with clear expectations for democratic accountability, legal protections, and civil liberties.
- The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) and relevant UN Special Rapporteurs to take urgent action: initiate investigations, issue public statements, and demand the protection of civic actors and political opposition in Tanzania.
As Tanzania’s 2025 elections loom, we face a critical moment to prevent further democratic reversal. The world failed to act decisively during Magufuli’s tyranny; we must not repeat that mistake.
A Luta Continua!
Dr. Kawive, Wambua
Inuka Kenya Ni Sisi!
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