NAIROBI, Kenya — Belgut Member of Parliament Nelson Koech has issued a public apology over remarks made last year in which he appeared to call on police officers to “shoot and kill” protesters, saying the comments were made in the heat of the moment and did not reflect his character or beliefs.
“I want to apologize; it is not my character, and I am totally embarrassed by that statement,” Koech said. “It came in the heat of the moment, and I should have been more careful with how I made my statement.”
The legislator acknowledged that his remarks were inappropriate and regretted the language used, following sustained public backlash and renewed debate over the state’s response to youth-led demonstrations.
Koech’s comments were made during the height of the Gen Z–led protests that swept across the country in 2023 and 2024, driven by anger over the rising cost of living, proposed tax increases under the Finance Bills, police brutality, governance failures, and allegations of shrinking civic space.
The demonstrations, which were largely organised by young people through social media, were among the most sustained protests Kenya has witnessed in recent years. Human rights groups estimate that more than 100 people were killed across protests in 2023 and 2024, with hundreds more injured, many from gunshot wounds.
In his original remarks, delivered in Chebirbei, Kericho County, Koech defended President William Ruto’s directive that police should shoot demonstrators in the leg to stop looting and vandalism, arguing that the order should instead be “shoot to kill.”
“I want to thank President Ruto. Yesterday, the moment you said shoot but do not kill, I want to repeat it here, in fact, shoot and kill,” Koech said at the time, remarks that sparked widespread condemnation from civil society, opposition leaders and rights organisations.
Koech, who chairs the National Assembly’s Defence, Intelligence and Foreign Relations Committee, argued then that police officers were justified in using lethal force where they assessed a threat to life, citing provisions of the National Police Service Act. He also claimed that violent actors had hijacked otherwise peaceful protests, leading to destruction of property and loss of life.
In a reversal of position during an interview with Citizen TV on Thursday, Koech said he would never advocate for the unlawful killing of Kenyan youth and insisted that his comments had been taken out of context.
“The sanctity of life is provided for and guaranteed by the Constitution and the Bible which I believe in,” he said.
The apology comes amid continued scrutiny of the government’s handling of protests. During the June 25, 2024 anniversary demonstrations against the Finance Bill, at least 16 people were killed, most allegedly by police, according to Amnesty International Kenya.
The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) later reported 31 deaths and 107 injuries during another wave of protests this week, alongside vandalism in at least 15 counties.
President Ruto has repeatedly defended firm police action against what he describes as violent protesters, warning that attacks on police stations and security installations amount to terrorism.
Critics, however, accuse the police of excessive force, use of live ammunition on unarmed protesters, and complicity in enforced disappearances and abductions. There have also been allegations of organised groups of armed youths, popularly referred to as “goons,” being deployed to disrupt demonstrations and loot businesses.
Article 37 of the Constitution guarantees the right to peaceful assembly, demonstration, and petition, while international human rights standards restrict the use of lethal force to situations where it is strictly unavoidable to protect life.
Koech’s apology has reignited calls for accountability, police reform, and an independent investigation into protest-related deaths, as Kenya grapples with balancing public order, constitutional freedoms, and growing youth discontent.
