Siasa Place CEO Nerima Wako has confirmed that Mercy Tarus is safe and alive following reports on social media claiming that the activist had died.
Wako addressed the rumours through a brief statement on Sunday, June 7, after personally speaking with Tarus.
She condemned what she described as growing online harassment, misinformation, and targeting of young women on social media platforms.
"I just spoke to Mercy Tarus. She is fine. What is not fine is the culture on this platform that relentlessly targets, bullies, and harasses, especially young women.
"Some people have become so comfortable spreading misinformation that they no longer pause to consider the anxiety, stress, and real harm they cause others. Silence sometimes is a refusal to dignify nonsense," she said.
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Wako also pushed back against calls demanding that Tarus publicly prove she was safe, arguing that such expectations were unfair and unnecessary.
"Tarus does not owe proof that she is okay. We should have heard from her family if anything serious. She certainly does not owe explanations to strangers demanding them. What was posted is simply false," she added.
Tarus first gained national attention in 2023 when she confronted Uasin Gishu leaders, including Senator Jackson Mandago, over the fraudulent Finland and Canada education program.
In 2024, she was among the young Kenyans who took part in anti-government protests, demanding the withdrawal of the Finance Bill and advocating for better governance under President Ruto's administration.
Tarus subsequently appeared on various local TV and radio stations, where she openly criticized the government and highlighted pressing national issues.
In addition, she started the Kenya ni Home initiative, aimed at providing civic education to Kenyans.
Notably, Narok Senator Ledama Olekina expressed interest in working with Tarus after the meeting in which she confronted the leaders.
In honour of her courage as well as a show of admiration, Ledama said he would wish to work with her.
"Mercy Tarus I would like you to work for me, speak your heart, the future belongs to candid youth! Let’s talk," he tweeted.
However, Tarus turned down the job offer, asking the Senator to chip in and help their parents hold the leaders to account.
"Ledama, before we can further this conversation, talk to your fellow Senators to bring the Uasin Gishu County Government to book and compel them to refund rightfully hard-earned money to the citizens of Kenya. Maybe then, we can talk. Otherwise, I have nothing more to say," she said.
Responding to the demand, Ledama clarified that the scholarship scandal cannot be probed by Senators.
"Anyone who obtains money under false pretense should be jailed! I have no business talking to Senator Mandago about the Finland scholarship scandal. He knows what he did.
"Let him face the consequences. This is not a Senate issue. I am cut from a different cloth. I belong to a club of future thinkers, and I only reward boldness! I am a self-made industrialist, apart from being a politician. You will learn this slowly," he said.
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