Not long after widespread, and deadly, protests against tax hikes rocked Kenya in June and forced a sharp government turnaround, Ugandans assembled for anticorruption protests, before Nigerians too began clamouring for demonstrations.
Many had watched captivating scenes on social media and on Kenyan news channels showing demonstrators storming the Parliament Building in the capital Nairobi on June 25. As lawmakers scampered into hiding, the angry protesters set fire to the building. They seized the ceremonial mace, symbolising how power had changed hands, even as police rained bullets on them. It was a striking show of anger in a country long seen as a pillar of stability in East Africa.
