- Passaris had commented on the news by a local media station, saying that the actions of the police were "unwarranted and unprofessional!"
- However, a user named Wanjiru Githiomi responded by saying the words were not just 'unprofessional' but 'outright criminal'.
Image: FILE
Nairobi Woman Rep Esther Passaris has hit back at a critic who condemned her use of words while commenting on the news of police brutality against a Multimedia University student.
In an X exchange, Passaris had commented on the news by a local media station, saying that the actions of the police were "unwarranted and unprofessional!"
However, a user named Wanjiru Githiomi responded by saying the words were not just 'unprofessional' but 'outright criminal'.
She went on to condemn Passaris for supporting the Kenya Kwanza government, saying it was also liable to the actions of police.
"What do you mean 'unprofessional'? This is outright criminal!" she said.
"Your loyalty to this regime makes you liable for these acts. Hold your peace- speak not!"
In response, Passaris said:
"Too much English and you don’t know what I mean by ‘unprofessional’? Seriously. What is wrong is wrong."
She then stated that the government has structures to deal with police brutality.
"We are not a failed state; though we have many failures. By the way the ‘we’ includes you and me as citizens irrespective of our positions at work or on the state of work," the MP said.
"I am responsible, but I take no responsibility for that which I am not responsible for. Collectively ‘we’ are all responsible. Speak your mind. I too will speak my mind. You do not have more rights than I do. Get off your high horse of know-it-all-all. You don’t. Neither do I."
In the incident that caused the bitter exchange, several anti-riot police were on Tuesday caught on tape assaulting a student who appeared to be injured.
One of the officers then dropped a detonated tear gas canister next to him.
It exploded inches away from the student as he lay on the ground, writhing in pain.
On the day, students at the Multimedia University held protests for the better part of Tuesday and disrupted traffic on Magadi Road.
The incident sparked uproar online, with Kenyans calling for legal action against the officers.
“His elbow was dislocated in an apparent display of disregard for human life. The officers left him in a perilous situation,” MMU student leaders said.
They added that they would not be cowed by the blatant display of police brutality and vowed to continue with their strike.