He’s truly the people’s hero! This is the unthinkable thing Boniface Mwangi made president Uhuru do

Always trust Boniface Mwangi to get what’s he’s looking for as he has demonstrated time and time again.

Well, he has done it yet again and trust me this will earn him great respect and adoration from the masses.

One of the biggest hurdles Kenya has always struggled with is a burgeoning wage bill which has always threatened to crumble the economy and in the heart of it all is the National Assembly.

Time and time again MP’s have been known to sneak in retrogressive laws behind our backs and always come out with added perks.

Not anymore, actually their salaries might be halved very soon if the president’s declaration is anything to go by.

And guess courtesy of whose efforts? Boniface Mwangi of course.

This was his journey through the whole process which started sometime in 2013:

On 1st May 2013, with fellow activists, I organized a protest against our MPs’ planned salary hike. It was at Uhuru Park, during the Labour Day celebrations. I was beaten and arrested in the presence of H.E Uhuru Kenyatta. Later, I was charged in court. Undeterred, 12 days later on 13th May, we organized a follow-up protest against the planned salary increment.

 

In what could be Kenya’s most famous protest in recent history, we delivered LIVE pigs to Parliament, as a symbol of MPs’ greed.  The police responded: with teargas, water cannons, batons and arrests were made. Among the people who were tear-gassed and water-cannoned were Prof. Yash Pal Ghai and his wife. 17 of us were arrested on that day.  Not a single politician condemned the violence. We were charged. Four years later, the case is still ongoing.

 

A month later we went back, to protest against the high salaries. In 2016, l announced l was going to run for MP. One of my calls to action was that we must reduce our elected officials’ salaries. Two weeks ago, l was interviewed alongside Salaries and Remuneration Commission – SRC Chair Serem, and said we must review salaries downwards. She agreed with me.

 

On Wednesday, during the State of The Nation address, President Uhuru said that elected officials’ salaries must be cut in half. Our activism on the streets, and online –in our homes and work places– has won. I shall continue with this fight inside parliament.

 

Let no one tell you that change is impossible! *RohoJuu*