NAIROBI, Kenya – It was supposed to be a day of reflection, gratitude, and love. But on this third Sunday of June—globally recognised as Father’s Day—Kenyans on social media had something very different on their minds: justice for Albert Ojwang’.
At 5:45 a.m., the National Police Service (NPS) quietly posted a generic Father’s Day message across its platforms. No caption. No emotion. Just a plain graphic marking the day.
But Kenyans were already wide awake—and they weren’t in the mood for sentiment.
What followed was a digital storm of rage, grief, and painful remembrance. The Father’s Day post by NPS became a magnet for messages mourning the late Albert Ojwang, a teacher, blogger, and father who died in police custody at Nairobi’s Central Police Station barely a week earlier.
By 7 a.m., the replies had transformed the NPS post into a memorial wall. One by one, Kenyans questioned how a force responsible for so much pain could now celebrate fathers without acknowledging the tragedy that has gripped the nation.
“A #FathersDay post after taking away a son from his father who is also a father of a one-month son… …and LYING about it #JusticeForAlbertOjwang.” a user snapped.
The irony stung. Ojwang, a young father and only child, had left behind both a devastated father and a son too young to understand why he’d never see his dad again.
Now, both father and son were at the centre of a national conversation that was as angry as it was heartbreaking.
And it wasn’t just ordinary Kenyans weighing in.
Activist and Nation columnist Hanifa Adan used her Sunday piece to pay tribute to Ojwang, titling her article “Father’s Day Without a Son: Tears for Albert Ojwang.” Her column gave a human face to the trending hashtags, articulating the pain of a father robbed of his only child just days before a holiday meant to celebrate that very bond.
As the online reckoning continued, the backlash spread to President William Ruto’s daughter, Charlene Ruto. Like many others, she shared a post honouring her father, but the response was swift and unforgiving.
“At least you get to celebrate your father this Father’s Day,” one top comment read. “Albert would have loved to do the same, to sit with his dad, laugh, and share a meal. But those who murdered him played God.”
Others called her out for remaining silent on Ojwang’s death despite her frequent claims of being a youth leader and advocate. “You’ve said nothing,” a user pointed out, “and yet a young man was brutally killed.”
The incident underscored a larger truth: the growing mistrust between Kenyan citizens and the police force.
Ojwang’s death—and the cover-up allegations swirling around it—has triggered not only an official investigation but also a public reckoning about state power, accountability, and the weight of silence.
So this year, Father’s Day in Kenya wasn’t just about cards, cake, and childhood memories. It was also about calling out a broken system—and demanding that, in the name of all fathers, justice is done.
