A section of Nairobi County City Hall set on fire by demonstrators on June 25, 2024, during anti- Finance Bill 2024, protests.
When chaos erupted and security forces failed to contain the determined Gen Z protesters during the #OccupyParliament and #RutoMustGo movements in June 2024, several institutions bore the brunt of the unrest.
One of the hardest-hit areas was City Hall which was partly set on fire after protesters pushed back from Parliament and redirected their anger toward Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja’s office.
The protesters appeared intent on burning down the entire building. However, the situation was calmed and the fire was contained, thanks largely to the efforts of one officer.
The then Chief Officer in charge of the Inspectorate Department Tony Kimani was the only senior official present at City Hall during the attack. Most other staff had been working remotely in the days leading up to June 25, 2024.
As a trained officer, Mr Kimani recalls how he stood his ground with a handful of accompanying officers. Together, they managed to repel some of the intruders who had made their way into the building and attempted to start fires from the upper floors.
“A few minutes after they accessed City Hall from the executive side, we saw smoke and that’s when I knew we were in real trouble,” Mr Kimani told Nation in an interview. “They were in the hundreds and highly charged. We fought them off using what we had but they found another way in.”
According to Mr Kimani, the protesters’ goal was to burn down City Hall completely. They blocked City Hall Way preventing fire engines from accessing the area as the fire spread.
At that moment, he knew the protesters were serious and he decided to reach out to them communicating in a language they understood.
Mr Kimani resorted to sheng, the urban slang spoken widely by Kenyan youth to get their attention.
“Our entire team had fled. I confronted the youths and I know how to talk to boys from the estates. I told them, ‘You can’t do this. This is my job, majamaa, hamuwezi niaribia mboka (guys, you can’t mess up my livelihood).’”
He then approached the police officers guarding Parliament and pleaded for a water cannon to help extinguish the fire at City Hall.
After some negotiation, the police released one of their vehicles to assist and the angry crowd allowed Mr Kimani to lead the firefighting effort.
“That is how we saved City Hall. We put out the fire and I gathered the young men and told them there was nothing of value to loot inside. They started dispersing, one by one. I went home that day a happy man,” he said.
Despite his heroic role, Mr Kimani was demoted months later by Governor Sakaja from Chief Officer of the Inspectorate to Chief Officer in charge of Public Service.
His former position was given to Eva Wairiuko who was appointed acting Chief Officer for the Inspectorate docket.
In addition to the damage at City Hall, protesters also destroyed other county infrastructure, including a mobile recording studio truck that Governor Sakaja said cost the county Sh60 million.
The county has yet to disclose the full extent of losses incurred during the 2024 anti-Finance Bill protests.
Several attempts to get a response from Acting County Secretary Godfrey Akumali were unsuccessful as he did not return calls or messages.
