An unlikely tiff between journalist Ciru Muriuki and Nairobi Woman Representative Esther Passaris has broken out on social media.
It all began when Passaris seemingly sided with the protestors in an X post, calling for justice for a mask hawker shot at point-blank range by a police officer during the Tuesday protests.
In her post, the lawmaker decried the shooting, calling for reforms in the police service, especially during the recruitment and training process.
"It is time we review the entry criteria, invest in psychosocial support for our officers, implement mandatory body cameras, and build a police service grounded in professionalism, dignity, and accountability," part of her statement read, further calling for more funding of police academies to facilitate this.
However, her remarks did not bode well with the former BBC journalist, who bluntly dismissed the MP's assertions, saying, "Girl, shut up. You’re not with us. Leave us alone."
In a subsequent post, Passaris called out the journalist for supposedly undermining the spirit of sisterhood by telling her to shut up, even when she was fighting for justice.
She further asserted that she was still an elected Member of Parliament in Nairobi County, whose mandate included seeking justice for every Nairobi resident, no matter the backlash.
Unmoved, the journalist simply reiterated, "I don’t think you understood me the first time, so I’ll say it again. Girl, shut up. Leave us alone. OMG."
Ultimately, the lawmaker did not back down, claiming that her words might have struck a nerve to elicit such strong reactions.
"When someone tells you three times to shut up for doing your job, just know you’ve already said something worth hearing. I lead. I serve. I speak. That won’t change. I recommend counselling to manage your anger," she stated.
Although the genesis of the rift was not spelt out, Passaris' involvement in the broad-based government might have stirred the pot, with the demonstrations having been closely based on protesting the same government.
Passaris's subsequent remarks that police officers caught on camera taking off with electronics stolen by goons during the protests were just collecting exhibits of a crime, were also not taken lightly by several X users.
However, supporters of both sides of the argument came out in support of their respective parties, further igniting the discussion.
