‘We will ensure June 25th is a public holiday’ says Eugene Wamalwa

Democratic Action Party of Kenya (DAP-K) leader Eugene Wamalwa declared that the incoming government will formalise June 25 as a public holiday to honour the young Kenyans who lost their lives while demanding good governance and accountability.

Speaking at a press conference after leading a peaceful commemorative march to Parliament, Wamalwa said that the people have spoken, and their voice must be respected. “When the people say it should be a public holiday, they have the last say. Today has turned out to be a public holiday, and as the incoming government, we will ensure that future memorials on this day will be formalised as a public holiday to celebrate the courage of our young people who came out to demand good governance and accountability,” Wamalwa stated .

He described the nationwide commemorations as a success, with participation recorded in Nairobi, Mombasa, western Kenya, the Rift Valley, and Nyanza . He praised Kenyans who honoured the day by staying home, calling it a form of respect for those he described as fallen patriots. “Today’s march was a march for justice, a march for accountability,” Wamalwa added.

The former Defence Cabinet Secretary insisted that the government’s compensation to affected families is insufficient and called for full accountability. “It is not enough that this government has given Ksh3 million shillings to the families. What the families are asking for is justice. That the rogue officers who shot and killed these people be investigated, arrested, and prosecuted so that each family can get justice,” Wamalwa said. He added that all those abducted, tortured, and disappeared equally deserve justice and compensation .

Wamalwa condemned the heavy security deployment across Nairobi, describing the barricading of roads leading to the city centre as an attempt to intimidate citizens .

“The city of Nairobi is completely barricaded. It shows a paranoid government that’s afraid of its own people,” he said. The commemorations took place amid heightened security across the capital, with roads leading to Parliament blocked and a heavy police presence deployed.