Embu Town descended into chaos Tuesday morning, with police and demonstrators clashing over the arrest of Manyatta MP Gitonga Mukunji.
For hours, the town was tense, with businesses closed, major roads blocked, and heavy police presence struggling to keep the unrest under control.
Protesters, mostly young people, set fires and blocked key roads, including the Embu-Meru and Embu-Kiritiri highways near the NHIF offices, paralyzing traffic and halting normal operations.
The demonstrations prompted the deployment of more police units, with reinforcements arriving in trucks and Land Cruisers to prevent looting and destruction—scenes similar to previous outbreaks of unrest in the area.
Officers responded by firing tear gas and shots into the air to disperse the crowd.
Despite their efforts, tensions remained high throughout the morning, forcing businesses, banks, supermarkets, shops, and government offices to close for the second day in a row. Embu’s normally bustling commercial center appeared to be a ghost town.
Protests erupted after MP Gitonga Mukunji was arrested on Monday afternoon under unclear circumstances.
According to his lawyer, Advocate Ndegwa Njiru, the legislator was apprehended around 3:00 p.m. and booked at the Kibii Police Station shortly before 4:00 p.m. under Occurrence Book (OB) number 06/07/07/2025.
Njiru stated that the Officer Commanding Station (OCS) at Kibii confirmed Mukunji was briefly detained there before being handed over to detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) in Juja.
While the OCS indicated that the MP could face charges for incitement to violence, no official charge sheet has been presented, and police have not issued a formal statement outlining the reasons for his arrest.
To add to the confusion, Mukunji’s whereabouts are unknown more than 24 hours after his arrest, and his vehicle remains parked at Kibii Police Station.
The lack of clarity surrounding the arrest has fueled speculation and public outrage, particularly among his supporters in Manyatta and throughout Embu County.
Calls for his immediate release have intensified, with residents accusing authorities of political intimidation and unlawful detention.
Leaders allied to the MP are expected to address the media in the coming days, with pressure mounting on law enforcement to explain the arrest and disclose Mukunji’s location.
