University student leaders have warned the government about a new wave of protests they will organise across Kenyan universities over the increasing cases of abductions and salary delays among lecturers.
Speaking during a press conference convened by the leadership of the Kenya University Students Association (KUSA), the student leaders castigated the government for failing to act on the increasing instances of abductions targeting Kenyan youth, the majority of whom belong to their caucus.
KUSA, under the leadership of Teddy Omin Osano, announced that the protests will begin on January 15, when universities re-open.
''Revolution is the voice of the unheard, revolution is the voice of the majority silenced and pressed. We are announcing that immediately the comrades of the universities resume, including the lecturers and staffers, we are going to stage demonstrations in the republic of Kenya,'' Osano announced.
According to the students, it is unfortunate that the government has done little to crack down on the instances of abductions, subjecting many families to untold suffering and pain.
The students also revisited the thorny debate of having the abduction cases transferred to the International Criminal Court, under the Rome Statute.
''The Constitution of Kenya 2010, under Articles 29 and 49, clearly states that abductions are unlawful. International Criminal Law also recognises the same, providing a clause for such cases to be tried at the ICC,'' Osano added.
Additionally, the students announced that they would seek to compel the government during their protests to pay all the pending salary arrears of university staff.
KUSA further urged all university students across the country to come out in their numbers and paralyse key business activities, in a bid to send their message to the concerned authorities.
The fresh wave of protests comes against the backdrop of a recent, much-hyped protest that was to be held on Monday, 6 January. However, the demonstrations failed to gain momentum as police thwarted attempts by the organisers to mobilise and demonstrate within the Nairobi central business district.
Earlier, before the failed demos, the police, under the stewardship of Nairobi Regional Police boss Adamson Bungei, who spoke exclusively to Kenyans.co.ke, indicated that they would not allow the protests as they had not been notified.
''We cannot react to anything that is not official. Nothing is official so far. What we know is that those on social media are just keyboard warriors,'' Bungei told Kenyans.co.ke.
Already, a total of five abducted Kenyans, including Gideon Kibet, Bernard Kavuli, Peter Muteti, Billy Mwangi, and Ronny Kiplangat, were released at different intervals on Monday.
