In October 2021, the government announced an overhaul at the Kenya Power popularly known as KPLC. This marked the beginning of a clean up exercise in the institution that has been riddled with graft and mismanagement. The reforms are part of a wider scheme that will see the cost of electricity go down by up to a third.
However, the prolonged battle to institute changes in the power distribution company when a little-known lawyer took the bull by the horns and started a trend dubbed '#SwitchOffKPLC' in January 2018. That lawyer, who is now a household name, is none other than Jerotich Seii.
Born to two civil servants, Maj (Rtd) John Seii, and former ambassador, Tabitha Seii, her move to rub shoulders with government came as a surprise to many.
In fact, many termed her as a paper flame that would fade out before it got noticed.
Jerotich, a trained lawyer and a Consumer Justice Advocate, shifted her quest from online to the courtroom as many continued sharing their extrapolated power bills.
Through her lawyer, the humanitarian and social activist, filed a public interest Petition No. 6 of 2018 to challenge KPLC and the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) to review the cost of electricity.
In May 2020, Jerotich was back again, this time coming to the aid of Kenyans who were suffering the biting effects of a dwindling economy owing to the the coronavirus pandemic.
Through her twitter handle, she helped raise funds for several families that were undergoing tough economic times to barely afford food and rent.
The Humanity Kenya campaign raised over Ksh3 million, which she distributed to 1,400 families across the country with each receiving between Ksh2,000 and Ksh8,000 depending on their needs.
Jerotich was part of the Linda Katiba group that led a campaign to rally Kenyans to reject the proposed Constitutional Amendment Bill (2020) popularly known as the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI).
Other members included Narc Kenya party leader, Martha Karua, activist Boniface Mwangi, economist David Ndii, and Community Advocacy and Awareness Trust Executive Director, Daisy Amdany.
