An exclusive report has exposed a disturbing scheme in which hired gangs were paid as little as KSh50 to violently disrupt peaceful protests in Nairobi’s Central Business District (CBD) on Tuesday, June 18.
According to a Citizen TV investigation, at least three individuals involved in the attacks admitted on record that they were recruited, grouped, and instructed to instill fear, create chaos, and intimidate demonstrators.
Armed with wooden clubs and riding on motorbikes, the attackers were reportedly drawn from various informal settlements, including Kibera, Kawangware, Korogocho, and Dagoretti. The men revealed that they were assembled at strategic points—such as the roundabout near Uhuru Park, Green Park, and Dennis Pritt Road—where they were briefed before launching attacks on protesters.
“We were promised between KSh50 and KSh2,000 depending on what we did,” one of the men told reporters, noting that they were deliberately instructed to sow panic and scatter protest crowds.
However, some now claim they were shortchanged, saying that the individuals who contracted them have since gone silent.
“We haven’t been paid what was promised. They’ve disappeared and are not picking up our calls,” another said.
The revelations have fueled public outrage amid ongoing anti-government demonstrations largely organized by Gen Z activists demanding accountability, transparency, and justice for victims of police brutality.
Rights groups and civil society organizations are now demanding a formal investigation into the orchestration and funding of the attacks, which were widely condemned for undermining lawful assembly and peaceful expression.
