It was an attempted coup': CS Kipchumba Murkomen says over June 25th protests

 'It was an attempted coup': CS Kipchumba Murkomen says over June 25th protests

Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen has declared that the June 25 protests were not ordinary demonstrations but a calculated attempt to forcibly overthrow the government.

Addressing the press on Thursday, Murkomen alleged that the protests were masterminded to incite violence, destroy property, and loot homes and businesses belonging to government allies. He claimed that intelligence gathered by security agencies included video footage of vehicles transporting large sums of cash to protesters, describing the operation as a "well-funded and well-orchestrated coup attempt."

“This was not a protest—it was an unconstitutional plot to change the government,” Murkomen asserted. “Our officers, under extreme provocation, managed to prevent a coup. They were the true victims, and many were injured while defending the nation.”

He defended the conduct of police during the protests, saying they acted with restraint and were unfairly vilified despite being the ones under attack. Murkomen also dismissed international and religious criticism of police brutality, accusing some diplomats and religious leaders of ignoring the plight of law enforcement in favour of what he termed “anarchy and chaos.”

“No diplomat will defend our police because peace in Kenya isn’t their priority. But we will stand by our officers,” he said.

The CS issued a stern warning to those he claims were behind the unrest, vowing that arrests were imminent: “We will come for you. Make no mistake.”

He also ridiculed criticism of the police, saying officers were right to respond forcefully given the scale of the threat. “Guns aren’t toys. Burning a police station isn’t activism. If we hadn’t acted, there’d be no country to protect today,” Murkomen declared.

He revealed that five police stations, 88 police vehicles, 27 county government cars, and 65 private vehicles were torched during the violence, with billions lost in business disruptions and looting.

As investigations continue, Murkomen maintained that the so-called protests were part of a broader scheme to destabilize the nation and discredit law enforcement, but that the government would not tolerate attempts to weaken its grip through lawlessness.