Gachagua’s DCP Hits Out At Raila For ‘Shoot-To-Kill’ Statement
Rigathi Gachagua’s Democracy for the Citizens Party (DCP) has strongly criticized former Prime Minister Raila Odinga’s denunciation of suspected shoot-to-kill orders given to police.
The party stated that the ODM leader had demonstrated hypocrisy and involvement in state atrocities.
DCP published a statement Friday evening calling Raila’s views “factually untenable, disingenuous, and contradictory.”
The party contended that as a key member of the Kenya Kwanza administration, Raila is directly responsible for its activities.
“Raila’s assertions are factually untenable, disingenuous, and contradictory,” DCP deputy party leader Cleophas Malalah said.
The party accused Raila of supporting state excesses by allegedly involving ODM-affiliated youth in crowd control during protests.
The DCP also cited notable ODM supporters’ vocal support for the government’s use of excessive force against protesters.
Dcp Party's Statement calling out Raila Odinga for pretending to care about Kenyan Youth oppressed by the same regime he eloped to. pic.twitter.com/pQyemazew1
— Cleo Malalah (@Cleophasmalala) July 11, 2025
The party claimed that ODM’s silence on these endorsements “underscores its alignment with state-sanctioned brutality.”
Malala claimed that Raila and ODM continue to benefit politically from an administration “implicated in the lethal suppression of legitimate Gen-Z protests.”
“They share culpability for these transgressions and cannot now selectively disavow them,” he said.
The DCP announcement came hours after Raila’s remarks earlier that day.
Raila issued a brief statement condemning shoot-to-kill, maim, or shock orders to police in any situation requiring law enforcement.
The directions have been linked to both President William Ruto and Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen.
The duo has threatened strong action against anyone who commit violent acts and destroy property in order to destabilize the administration under the cover of protest.
“All the above orders—shoot to kill, maim, disorient or shock citizens—are wrong,” Raila said.
Any orders or instructions to the police to shoot to kill, maim, disorient, or shock citizens are wrong! pic.twitter.com/EcGN1IsaO4
— Raila Odinga (@RailaOdinga) July 11, 2025
The ODM leader emphasized the rule of law and due process, cautioning against handing police “illegitimate and deadly powers over citizens even when the citizens are perceived to have broken the law.”
He urged security agencies to “prioritize arrests and arraignment in courts over the killing, maiming, or brutalization of suspects.”
Raila stressed the importance of respecting suspects’ human rights and avoiding militarized policing, saying that such an approach “only increases the risk of violence.”
“A militarised approach to policing endangers both the suspect and the law enforcement officers.”
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In a stinging reaction, DCP described Raila’s remark as a late-stage attempt at image restoration.
“Raila’s belated dissociation appears driven by apprehensions over his legacy and diminished public standing following his alignment with this administration,” the statement read.
“This effort at retrospective image rehabilitation is rendered hollow by his continued participation in a government that inflicts suffering upon Kenyans—including documented abductions, torture, and extrajudicial killings—and his sustained fraternisation with its architects.”
The heated conversation between Raila and the DCP reveals profound differences within the political elite regarding the state’s management of protests and the use of force by law enforcement.
Gachagua’s DCP Hits Out At Raila For ‘Shoot-To-Kill’ Statement
