Nairobi — Bloggers Gabriel Oguda and Osama Otero are among content creators and influencers missing following a series of arrests by police ahead of Tuesday's anti-Finance Bill protests.
The arrests have been linked to state agents, who have recently intensified their crackdown on those believed to be mobilizing the protests. The missing individuals had been making numerous posts critical of the proposed Finance Bill and the government.
The two are said to have been linked to hosting massive X-Spaces discussions against the Finance Bill since protests began last week.
Oguda alerted his followers to his impending arrest early in the morning, disclosing via social media that police officers were outside his home.
"Guys. Cops are at my gate," Oguda posted on X at 2:18 am before going silent. His arrest was later confirmed by his brother, Zachary Oguda.
"I can confirm that my brother has been taken by unknown gunmen from his house 5 minutes ago," Zachary posted on X at 2:53 am, informing followers that any posts from the blogger's accounts were scheduled.
Otero also alerted his followers a few minutes after Oguda's distress message, disclosing that five people believed to be state agents were knocking at his door.
"Guys [believed to be police officers] are outside where I am," Otero posted on X at 3 am.
Oguda and Otero have not been heard from since, and their whereabouts remain unknown.
Other X users suspected to have been abducted include Shad Khalif, who was accosted by unknown individuals in South B before being forced into a vehicle on Sunday, and John Frank Githiaka alias Franje, who was taken by unidentified plainclothes officers from his office at Beast Athletic Offices on Baringo Road in Kahawa Sukari.
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A CCTV footage circulated online showed the moment Franje was arrested by men, including a masked individual wearing a bulletproof vest.
Other influencers believed to have been arrested include Drey Mwangi and Harriet, among others. The whereabouts of those abducted are yet to be established, and the government has remained silent on the motive behind the arrests.
On Monday evening, Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki stated that while the government would allow protests to proceed, it would not tolerate any form of lawlessness or interference from those opposed to the protests.
"Non-protesters and those who hold contrary views with the protesters are also bound by the same Constitutional and legal imperatives," he said. CS Kindiki maintained that national security organs would remain neutral, apolitical, and firmly enforce the law.
The Law Society of Kenya (LSK) and human rights groups have condemned the arrests, terming them unlawful. LSK President Faith Odhiambo called out the government over the detention of the protesters and urged the public "to be extra vigilant at this time."
"To these rogue cops and their masters, you may flout and contravene the constitution, but you cannot extinguish its resilient spirit; the law will catch up with you," she said.
She appealed to the public to share and communicate any information they may have to help establish the whereabouts of the missing influencers.
"We continue to do what we can and must; let us be each other's keeper," Odhiambo added.
