Nairobi, Kenya, Mar 26-The Azimio La Umoja One Kenya coalition has announced secure web platform for Kenyans to upload videos, audio and photos from the second leg of planned anti-government protests set to continue Monday.
The Inspector General of Police Japheth Koome has outlawed the protests, but Opposition chief Raila Odinga and his troops insist they will demonstrate in the capital Nairobi, in what is promising to be an eventful day.
Similar protests turned violent in Nairobi and Kisumu last week when one person- a student at Maseno University was shot dead.
National Assembly Minority leader Opiyo Wandayi said Sunday that the portal is aimed at assuring Kenyans of accountability during the demonstrations that will be taking place on a weekly- Monday and Thursday.
He said they are responding to what he described as a “real threat to the free media,” days after the Communications Authority warned the media to be cautious while broadcasting live events related to protests.
Wandayi encouraged Kenyans to post the events during the protests in the portal to guarantee accountability.
“This material will be available for the world to see. This will enable us to keep the public and all stakeholders informed of progress and real-time occurrences across the country,” he said.
He pointed out that anybody with a phone or a camera, can access and post anonymously or view any posted material remotely.
Wandayi further warned those planning to disrupt peace during the protests that their actions will be recorded.
“All those that intend to cause mayhem will also be captured through a number of our IP-enabled spy cameras that will transmit to our cloud servers in real time. A link to the portal is http://mddkenya.com,” he said.
Last week, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) circulated images of people wanted for the destruction of property during March 20 demos.
However, the DCI was later forced to issue a public apology after Independent fact checkers pointed out that some of the photos were from old events, some as far back as 10 years ago.
President Ruto has warned against the protests and instead told Odinga he will not engage him in talks, accusing him of destabilizing the country for his own selfish interests like he did in two former regimes that ended up accommodating him.
“Kenyans made their decision during the August 2022 polls, we are done with the polls and all that remains is prepare for development,” he said, “we are not going to engage Raila because he knows he lost and we won.”
