Duale defends KDF deployment during protests, says it prevented loss of lives

Environment Cabinet Secretary nominee Aden Duale has defended the decision to deploy the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) during the recent nationwide anti-Finance Bill protests.

Speaking before the Committee on Appointments on Friday, Duale emphasised that the deployment was necessary to prevent potential loss of life among Members of Parliament, the Speaker, and to safeguard public order.

Duale explained that according to the Constitution of Kenya, the KDF can be deployed in critical situations where police forces are overwhelmed.

“I did not deploy KDF. The framers of the Constitution put Article 241 (3)(b) and (3)(c) in the Constitution. The KDF has been active in various critical areas, such as Boni Forest against Al-Shabaab, the North Rift combating banditry, and during past terror attacks at Westgate and Garissa University, in which many lives were lost. For peace, public order, and public safety, where the police are overwhelmed, Article 241 3b kicks in the function of the Minister for Defence,” he said.

“Once it kicks in, I am supposed to do subsidiary legislation. I gazette. That day, the Chief Justice's office, the Supreme Court as an institution, the parliament, and our colleagues were all under threat. If the KDF had not come to assist, we could have lost many MPs, including our Speaker. Parliament could have been burned down. As a Minister of Defence, I will not act irresponsibly in violation of the Constitution.

Protesters carry a Kenyan flag after lighting a fire along Tom Mboya Street on Tuesday, July 2, 2024, while demonstrating against the government. (Photo: Justine Ondieki/EV)

In a gazette notice dated June 25, the former Defence CS cited Article 241(3)(b) of Kenya's constitution to declare the deployment of the KDF in support of the National Police Service.

According to Duale, the deployment of KDF soldiers was in response to ongoing violent protests in various parts of the Republic of Kenya, which resulted in over 50 deaths, the destruction of properties, and the breaching of critical infrastructure, including the Parliament buildings.

However, the Law Society of Kenya later filed a lawsuit, arguing that no official declaration of emergency, unrest, or instability in Kenya justifies the deployment of the KDF to support the NPS.

They stated that the military is not the best fit and is not professionally trained to deal with internal security matters involving civilians.

They asserted that the gazette notice poses a huge threat of violation of the fundamental rights and freedoms of many Kenyans who wish to exercise their right to peacefully protest within the confines of the constitution.