President William Ruto's daughter, Charlene Ruto, has joined Kenyans in mourning the death of Albert Ojwang.
Breaking her silence on the incident that occurred a week ago, Charlene called for national reflection and a generational ceasefire to address rising cases of police brutality.
Speaking after the Youth Leadership Forum in Nairobi, Charlene led the 106 participants in observing a moment of silence for the 31-year-old teacher and social media influencer, whose death in police custody sparked public outrage.
She noted that the tragedy had driven her to deep reflection as she tried to understand the circumstances surrounding Ojwang’s death.
She revealed that the situation was both painful and unfortunate while extending her condolences to the bereaved family.
"I have struggled with deep moments of reflection for the past few days to try and find context around what happened. This is a painful, unfortunate and overwhelming loss, and we share our deepest condolences with his family," Charlene wrote in a Twitter post.
Ojwang, a well-known blogger and activist, was arrested in Homa Bay and later detained at Central Police Station in Nairobi, where he died under unclear circumstances.
In response, Charlene called for a generational ceasefire among the youth, urging a shift away from rising extremism, political hostility, and intolerance.
She challenged young people to take responsibility and work towards building the kind of society they wish to live in.
"As a young Kenyan, I would also like to challenge the entire country to embrace a generational ceasefire. These regrettable incidents, extremity and growing intolerance should challenge all of us as a nation to interrogate the environment and culture we want to live in and create for the generations coming after us," the President's daughter wrote.
Ojwang's death has become a symbol of Kenya's ongoing struggle with police brutality, which has claimed the lives of many.
Already, Nairobi Central Police OCS Samsob Talam, and Constable James Mukhwana, the sentry who was on duty when Ojwang was brought in, have been arrested as investigations into the incident death continue.
