Ex-CJ David Maraga defends Gen Z against 'terrorists’ tag, says President William Ruto should resign

Former Chief Justice David Maraga has criticised President William Ruto’s administration for labelling protesting youths as terrorists, warning that the country is “going to the dogs” due to rising cases of killings, abductions and police brutality targeting young people.

In an interview with Citizen TV on Tuesday night, Maraga condemned what he termed as the “weaponisation of the justice system” against youth who are only exercising their constitutional rights.

“What is happening now is what we are also seeing: the president is weaponising the justice system to deal with these young people. They’re being called terrorists. These young people are not terrorists. These are young Kenyans whose only crime is to express their views, their constitutional rights, and to demand their constitutional rights. Instead of being applauded and supported, they are being killed. They are being abducted. This is serious,” he said.

He dismissed claims by President Ruto that the youth-led protests amount to an attempted coup, saying no evidence has been presented to support such allegations.

“We are yet to see any evidence in that regard. What I saw was police officers marching with hired goons side by side. How do you terrorise the country with bare hands? All these are mechanisms meant to cause fear so that the government does not allow demonstrations,” Maraga said.

He criticised the government’s handling of protesters, saying if he were the president, he would engage the youth directly.

“If I were President and people wanted to march to State House, I would get police to restrain them. People who are marching to State House are people who feel betrayed, like our young people. If their problems had been listened to, I don’t think they would have gotten there. If I were in State House, I would even walk out and ask the young people what it is they want, talk to them and find a way of addressing their issues,” he said.

Maraga said the protesters are simply expressing frustration with the current administration and pushing for Ruto’s resignation.

“What these people are saying in one term is that they are tired of Ruto’s governance system, and they are asking him to resign. What option is there? Parliament has the power to impeach the President,” he said.

He accused Parliament of failing in its oversight role, saying it had been “captured” and would not act.

“The President has violated countless provisions of the Constitution. If Parliament were doing its work, the President would not be in office today. The shortest route is for the President to resign, or if he fails to resign, Parliament is supposed to impeach him. But Parliament will not do that because it is captured,” he said.

He decried that Kenya is facing a serious political and economic crisis marked by the unprecedented loss of lives among young citizens.

“In Kenya today, we are in a serious political and economic crisis, one that we have not seen in this country before. Having close to 200 young people die in less than two years is shocking. It’s shocking,” Maraga said.

He lamented the deaths of 60 young people who were killed last year, terming the situation unacceptable.

“The numbers are increasing. This is shocking. When you hear the president ordering the shooting of Kenyan unarmed young people, I don’t know how other people feel. I get shocked. The President and the Interior CS have no power to order the shooting of people. They are supposed to be protecting them. If there are offences committed, they are supposed to be taken to court. Are we being told that the police are helpless? They can’t arrest those young people? It is quite shocking,” he posed.

The former CJ further slammed the government for abandoning its constitutional duty to protect lives, choosing instead to criminalise dissent.

He highlighted recent cases of indiscriminate killings, including that of a 12-year-old girl in Kiambu, saying the country is going to the ‘dogs’

“When you talk about the number of those who have been killed today, tens of them were buried, including the 12-year-old Bridget Njoki, who was just watching TV in her mum’s house. That tells you how indiscriminate the shootings were. So there’s something extremely worrying. And as Kenyans, unless we take action, our country is going to the dogs,” he said.

He said the government’s failure to address the frustrations of young Kenyans had left them feeling neglected and forced them into the streets.

“What did these young people do? Express their outrage. Why are they going to the streets? Why are they doing what they are doing? Because nobody cares about their interests. Nobody cares about their interests,” Maraga said.

He emphasised that the ongoing crises in the country pushed him to consider seeking elective office in the 2027 General Election. He maintained that he would continue speaking against injustice as he engages Kenyans across the country.