Police officers in Nairobi were on the night of Sunday, March 22, forced to fire gunshots in an attempt to disperse revellers from clubs at night.
Speaking to Kenyans.co.ke, former K24 TV anchor Ahmed Bhalo, who was at the scene, disclosed that officers stormed Pangani area at around 9:30 p.m. and proceeded to order clubs and other entertainment joints to close down.
In the video, a number of vehicles are seen parked in front of entertainment joints at the shopping centre. Patrons are later seen running away in what was an attempt to run for cover as gunshots are heard in the background.
In a presser at Harambee House in Nairobi on Sunday, Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe ordered that all clubs and bars be shut down by 7:30 p.m.
"We are at Pangani Shopping Center and it seems Kenyans ignored the government's directive to avoid social gatherings. At this centre, gunshots were heard as police tussled to disperse the crowds.
"Shop owners in the area are also closing down their shops following police orders. The joints ordered to shut down included Miraa joints as well as clubs," stated Bhalo.
A similar raid was visited on the area on the night of Saturday, March 21.
Bhalo further disclosed that the officers returned to Pangani Shopping Center on Sunday night at around 2 a.m. after the crowd had dispersed.
Kagwe ordered the closure of all bars and clubs in the country effective midnight to curb the spread of the Coronavirus disease (Covid-19) in Kenya.
Restaurants and eateries were also affected as they were directed to only serve takeaway orders.
The National Police Service (NPS) is expected to play a key role in enforcing the directives in the coming week.
Kagwe was accompanied to the press conference by Principal Secretary, State Department Of Interior, Karanja Kibicho and Inspector General of Police Hillary Mutyambai who echoed his sentiments.
Below is the video:
