Embakasi East Member of Parliament (MP) Babu Owino has said his security detail has been withdrawn just hours after he participated in the Wednesday, June 25, 2025, protests to commemorate protesters who had lost their lives in 2024.
In a statement on Thursday, June 26, 2025, Owino indicated that the government had decided to retaliate by withdrawing his security detail despite him having exercised his democratic right to peacefully protest.
“Yesterday, I stood with the people, not against the nation, but for its future. I exercised my democratic right to protest peacefully against the actions of a government that is failing its citizens. Today, in retaliation, the government has withdrawn my official security,” Owino stated.
Attack on democracy
The MP went ahead to state that the decision to withdraw his security detail was not only an attack on him but one on democracy.
“Let me be clear: this is not just an attack on me, it is an attack on democracy itself. When elected representatives are punished for standing with the people, it is a sign of a government that fears accountability, not one that serves,” he said.
He remarked that he would soldier on despite the exposure that the withdrawal of security had left him with, noting that Kenyans would protect him.
“I do not fear intimidation. I will not be silenced. My voice, and the voice of every citizen demanding justice, fairness, and freedom, will only grow louder. Kenyans are my security,” Owino said.
Babu joins protesters
To the public: Stay alert, stay united, and know that your leaders should answer to you, not threaten those who stand beside you. The truth cannot be suppressed. The movement for justice cannot be stopped. We will not back down.”
The legislator on Wednesday, June 25, 2025, was spotted among the protesters in solidarity with the mothers of victims.
The demos turned violent in the end, resulting in the deaths of at least eight people, with 400 others injured across the country, according to a preliminary report by the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR).
