June 25, 2025, will go down in Nakuru's history as one of the most hostile and emotionally charged days of protest the city has ever witnessed.

What began as a peaceful commemoration quickly spiraled into noise, fire, fury and rampant looting.

By mid-morning, parts of Nakuru had descended into chaos.

Teargas smoke fills the air during mashujaa protests in Nakuru city on June 25,2205.

Photo credit: PURITY KINUTHIA/MTAA WANGU

Pinkam Roundabout, once a traffic landmark, became an area of destruction. Goons tore down iron bars, smashed decorative stonework, and made away with the roundabout’s ornamental pieces.

The roundabout, turned into a battlefield between them and the police whereas Lions Garden turned into a safe haven for the protestors, a place to run to when chaos erupted.

Police officers block protesters from accessing Kenyatta avenue from Pinkam roundabout on June 25,2025.

Photo credit: PURITY KINUTHIA/MTAA WANGU

But that was not the only purpose it served in the June 25 protest, it was a hideout for looters.

Just across the street, the Total Energies fuel station wasn’t spared. Gas cylinders, vehicle oils, and refreshments were looted in broad daylight.

Total petrol station near Pinkam broken into by goons during mashujaa protests in Nakuru city on June 25,2025.

Photo credit: PURITY KINUTHIA/MTAA WANGU

Sokoni Plaza was next. Phone shops were ransacked. Traders watched helplessly as their entire stock disappeared within minutes. Sharp cries echoed down the streets as business owners realized the scale of the damage.

The goons who had infiltrated the demos, broke steel doors with one aim; to rain havoc on business.

Due to their hostility, many watched from afar, including journalists whose lives were threatened when we approached Sokoni plaza.

Outside KCB bank main branch, the attack took a digital turn. CCTV cameras were vandalized, with the goons running off with the devices, effectively paralyzing surveillance operations in that area.

CCTV cameras and benches that were vandalized by goons during mashujaa protests in Nakuru city on June 25,2025.

Photo credit: PURITY KINUTHIA/MTAA WANGU

However the protest did not start as chaotic.

From around 11:00 am, youthful voices rang through Nakuru's streets, mourning those killed during the June 25, 2024 demonstrations.

A protester shows up with an apron, helmet and basin during mashujaa demos in Nakuru city on June 25,2025.

Photo credit: PURITY KINUTHIA/MTAA WANGU

Many donned outfits in national colours and waved placards, singing the national anthem while chanting anti-government slogans.

It was powerful, it was unified, then it exploded when police lobbed teargas canisters into the crowd, triggering panic.

Throughout the day, the protest was as fluid as it was unpredictable.

Smaller groups of protestors appeared at different city points; Kenyatta Avenue, Mburu Gichua Road, Moi Road, splintering the protest into several mini uprisings.

This fragmentation made it nearly impossible for the police to quell the movement. As soon as one group was dispersed, another popped up elsewhere.

From 11 am to around 4 pm, Nakuru felt like a city under siege. Roads were barricaded with rocks and burning tyres.

Public transport halted. Banks and supermarkets shut their doors. The air was thick with teargas and smoke. Sirens wailed. The tension was palpable.

Police officers use horses to disperse protesters in Nakuru CBD on June 25,2025.

Photo credit: PURITY KINUTHIA/MTAA WANGU

Surprisingly, amid the destruction, there was a sense of compassion among the Gen Z protesters.

They looked out for one another. At one point when the police attempted to arrest one person, the protesters charged at them forcing the police to retreat.

This year’s protest wasn’t just another demonstration. It was a reckoning, fueled by last year’s trauma, grief, and rage.

The young people of Nakuru came out to demand justice, and they refused to be silenced.

Video June 25: Nakuru youth join in nationwide protests

From calm to chaos: How protest turned Nakuru into a city of destruction

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Bret Sanya