- In Murang’a town, streets remained clear for the better part of Wednesday morning, an indication of low business activities.
- Similar calm was observed in Nyeri town where business activities continued normally even as residents gave diverse reactions.
Image: Alice Waithera
As pockets of protesters poured onto streets in Nairobi to participate in the Nane Nane demonstrations, business in major towns in the Mt Kenya region went on unperturbed.
In Murang’a town, streets remained clear for the better part of Wednesday morning, an indication of low business activities.
Mary Wambui, a shopkeeper, told the Star that business has been at an all-time low in the last few months as Kenyans struggled to make do with limited resources.
Wambui said though Murang’a town has been spared the flurry of protests witnessed in many towns in the last two months, most residents are bitter about the state of the economy.
This, she said, is because they whole-heartedly supported the Kenya Kwanza administration during the 2022 general elections with high hopes that it would transform the economy.
Charles Mutahi, a boda boda operator, cheered on the youths participating in the protests saying they are right to fight for the betterment of the country.
“I'm not a youth and may be unable to engage in running battles with the police but if I were younger, I would have travelled to Nairobi to join them,” he said.
Mutahi, a father of two, said it has been difficult to pay school fees for his daughter who is Form 2 and a son who is in Grade 3.
“This economy has to get better otherwise many of us will not be able to educate our children,” he said, while urging President William Ruto not to give empty promises during his visit to the county on Friday.
Similar calm was observed in Nyeri town where business activities continued normally even as residents gave diverse reactions.
Anthony Murathi who operates a boutique said he has been supporting the protests due to the high taxes but noted that the protests risk further devastating the economy if they continue for too long.
Murathi said the youths should have given themselves a timeline for their demands to be acted upon to allow Kenyans to continue with their businesses.
But Silas Kimani, a boda boda operator, said his earnings have drastically dwindled over the few years, making it difficult to fend for his family.
“I started operating a boda boda in 2021 and would take home up to Sh2,000 daily. Now I barely make Sh1,000 and I’m lucky the boda boda is mine. Those employed to ride are barely earning a living,” he said.
In Thika town in Kiambu county, Dennis Mungai said a large number of youths travelled to Nairobi in the morning to participate in the protests.
Mungai said he would have joined them but needed to open his shoe selling business in order to try and make sufficient money to pay his bills.
“It's been very difficult nowadays and I have been finding myself struggling to raise money for rent, for both my house and the shop,” he said.
Relative calm was also reported in Nanyuki town within Laikipia county where most residents followed the protests on mobile phones and TV.