Mandera North MP Bashir Abdullahi has issued an apology following public uproar over comments he made in Parliament regarding the deaths of protestors during the anti-Finance Bill demonstrations in June 2024.
The MP’s initial remarks were widely condemned as dismissive after he appeared to downplay the loss of lives during the protests, prompting a strong backlash from the public.
In a statement on Thursday, May 1, days after the incident, Bashir acknowledged the reaction to his words and attempted to clarify their intent.
"Over the past few days, I have observed with concern the public reaction to a phrase attributed to me during a recent Parliamentary session— 'we sympathize and move on.' While the phrase has gone viral, it has unfortunately been taken out of context and does not reflect the intent or spirit of my remarks," he said.
Abdullahi emphasized that he had been part of a parliamentary session that condemned the tragic events of June 25, when several young Kenyans were killed during the protests.
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"Let me set the record straight. I was present in Parliament on that solemn day when we unanimously condemned the tragic events of 25th June 2024—when innocent Kenyan youth lost their lives during the anti-Finance Bill. We mourned as a House and stood in solidarity with the affected families. At no point did I intend to dismiss or downplay the profound loss that occurred," he added.
Abdullahi went on to express his personal anguish over the deaths, and concluded his statement with an apology and a demand for accountability.
"As a father, as a leader, and as a citizen of this nation, I am deeply pained by the killing of our young people—many of whom only sought to voice their frustrations peacefully, with courage and hope. Let it be known: I do not, and will never, support the unjust killings.
"I demand that those responsible be held accountable. If my words hurt the bereaved families or any Kenyan, I offer my deepest and unconditional apology," he said.
While speaking in Parliament a day after the release of BBC Africa Eye documentary, Blood Parliament, Abdullahi claimed Kenya had moved on from the events of June 25th 2024.
He claimed that the documentary was discriminatory, and that 'people die all the time' world over, further referencing the January 6 United States Capitol attack.
"As much as we agree that our fellow Kenyans lost their lives, unfortunately, we also moved on to ensure that we reconcile the country as we move on. BBC World Service has attended to this matter in a way that also looked at the Kenyan society as something that was discriminatory.
"Our media stations also picked it up without questioning how BBC World Service aired the story. It happens world over, people are killed, our people were killed, we sympathised, we moved on. People were killed in the US at Capitol Hill, BBC World Service never took the opportunity to say something, It happened in London, they never said it," he said.
