Goons in Nairobi streets recently..Photo/courtesy.
By IP reporter.
Published: August 24, 2025
Welcome to Kenya in 2025 where thuggery isn’t lurking in the shadows anymore.
It’s marching down city streets, riding in official convoys and crushing peaceful protests; all while the state watches silently.
In some cases the police don’t just turn a blind eye but they appear to open the door and usher the goons in.
These aren’t your run-of-the-mill street criminals.
They’re politically hired muscle — young, desperate and organized.
Armed with pangas, sticks and an ironclad sense of impunity, they’ve become a new force in our political landscape.
Whoever has more goons now rules the streets and unfortunately tomorrow it could be the country.
Who Are These Goons?
They’re mostly recruited from Nairobi’s informal settlements ; Mathare, Kibra, Kawangware and paid between KSh 500 and KSh 2,000 a day to unleash chaos.
Their targets? Peaceful protesters, political opponents, journalists and anyone else who dares challenge the state narrative or status quo.
In multiple cases, these goons were filmed walking alongside police, some even marching in support of President Ruto’s convoy while chanting pro-government slogans.
The message is unmistakable: these thugs have backing, protection and a mission.
State-Sponsored Violence in Plain Sight
If you’ve been paying attention, you’ve seen them unleashing violence while police stand by doing nothing.
In fact during recent anti-government protests, victims described goons to have arrived in the city in government-fueled motorcycles escorted by unmarked police vehicles.
They looted shops, beat protesters, and vanished into thin air without a single arrest made.
At the height of the July demonstrations, over 60 Kenyans lost their lives many in incidents where police let hired gangs run wild while focusing their firepower on unarmed youth and students.
Police: Protectors or Enablers?
In a functioning democracy, the police are meant to be neutral protectors of the public.
But here in Kenya that neutrality is wearing thin.
Reports from activists, journalists and civil society members paint a grim picture of a police force either overwhelmed or actively complicit.
One youth activist said it best: “They didn’t tear-gas the goons. They walked with them. They only targeted us.”
If you’re wondering whether this is being ignored from the top — think again.
These incidents have happened during official state functions, political tours and government rallies.
The silence from above is deafening and telling.
The Gachagua Revelation.
Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, now an outspoken critic of the regime, accused the government of arming and deploying these goons to intimidate opponents and loot property.
He claims the state has weaponized street gangs as a political tool and his claims are backed by numerous eyewitness accounts and footage.
What’s at Stake?
We’re heading into dangerous territory. If state-backed goons can silence protesters today, they can control elections tomorrow.
If power can be enforced by clubs and threats, why bother with institutions? Why vote at all?
This isn’t just a story of lawlessness but it’s a story of systemic decay.
Of a country slowly morphing into a place where violence trumps ballots and goon squads replace governance.
Are We Creating a Gangster Republic?
Here’s the hard truth: we’re normalizing political violence.
Every time a gang gets paid to silence dissent, we take one step closer to becoming a gangster state where who rules is no longer decided by the people but by who commands the biggest militia.
This isn’t about opposition vs. government. It’s about freedom vs. fear. Today they silence your neighbor but tomorrow they will silence you.
So What Now?
Silence is no longer an option.
We must demand accountability from the police and political leaders enabling this violence.
Civil society and the media must continue to expose these networks of hired terror.
Citizens we must refuse to be ruled by fear.
If we don’t act now, the goons will win but if they do, Kenya will no longer be a democracy but it will be a battleground for hired thugs in political colors.
Welcome to Goons’ Paradise but it doesn’t have to stay that way.
