Journalists John-Allan Namu, and Mark Maasai Challenge President Ruto to #AlutaContinua Town Hall Discussion(Details)
Investigative journalist John-Allan Namu and his media colleague Mark Masai have extended an invitation to President William Ruto to engage in a social town hall dubbed #AlutaContinua.
The journalists offered the open invite during a discussion streamed live on YouTube on Monday night.
“Open invitation to President William Ruto, come sit in this chair, ask the questions, answer some questions, hear the anger… Let’s get this thing moving to a destination all Kenyans want which is a better place where there’s fairness, and equality for everybody, not just some people,” Namu invited.
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Explaining the structure of their baraza, Namu highlighted that the slogan, which translates to “the struggle continues”, reflects the current economic and political situation in Kenya.
“We are in a political crisis. As we saw on June 25th, the mace was taken out of the National Assembly and that has huge symbolic power and there needs to be a resolution going forward.
“There’s a crisis of identity, in my view, this is a moment when we are beginning to think about this question of who Kenyans are culturally, what Kenya is, what is our political identity and how do we define that going forward?” Namu posed.
Masai emphasized that the town hall would also aim to address ongoing anti-government protests and the loss of lives during the demos.
Takeaways from the President’s Roundtable on June 30th
At the height of the anti-Finance Bill 2024 protests, President Ruto granted an interview to journalists Joe Ageyo, Linus Kaikai, Eric Latiff, and a section of digital publishers at State House to discuss his administration’s position on the protests.
Following the televised interview, President Ruto’s remark on the late 12-year-old Kennedy Onyango – who died after being shot in Ongata Rongai – went viral and sparked reactions from analysts and ordinary Kenyans alike.
Kenyans also lauded the journalists for asking hard-hitting questions to the president at a time when his administration’s policies were under scrutiny.
The President also followed it up with an X Spaces discussion dubbed #EngageThePresident where he interacted with Kenyans online and took some questions.
Ruto has since given a few off-the-cuff remarks on the youth protests accusing unnamed entities and the Ford Foundation of sponsoring an onslaught against democracy in Kenya.
The president has yet to speak on the protests since his pronouncement on the Ford Foundation, despite demonstrations that occurred on July 16 in major towns across the country.
Journalists John-Allan Namu, and Mark Maasai Challenge President Ruto to #AlutaContinua Town Hall Discussion(Details)
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