Residents of Masana village, community leaders and human right activists staged a peaceful demonstration seeking attention of the county government and county commissioner’s offices demanding immediate action and justice over the widespread cases of defilement of minors and murder in Vihiga County in the recent past.
Among recent cases is the murder of Dralon Kanaga, a grade eight student from Masana compressive school on May 14, 2026.
Demonstrators swarmed into the county commissioner’s grounds demanding justice for Dralon Kanaga with peaceful chants while carrying a casket to urge the local leadership to take immediate action against the criminals of these unpleasant acts.
The enraged but peaceful protestors later presented a formal petition to the Deputy County Commissioner, Vihiga Sub County, Linet Kerubo.
In their petition, the demonstrators demanded immediate action of boosting security measures across the county, and they called for the establishment of specialized human rights and gender-based violence (GBV) desks at all major hospitals to ensure that medical evidence in defilement and assault cases is properly preserved for easier investigations.
“We, the residents of Vihiga County, draw the urgent attention to your office to the alarming and deeply distressing surge in violent crimes against minors and women in our community,” residents and local leaders highlighted this in their petition.
Addressing the aggrieved crowd, Kerubo assured the residents that the government would leave no stone unturned in ensuring justice is served by revealing that forensic sample specimens from the victim had already been collected and taken to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) headquarters in Nairobi for further analysis and further urged the community to cooperate closely with law enforcement officers and local leaders to help identify and arrest criminals hiding within the villages.
She also assured the crowd that all citizens are equal before the law, and they all deserve justice telling them that the actions are being taken to get justice for Dralon Kanaga and the entire society.
Kerubo called on residents to volunteer information on any suspects which will be treated in confidentiality, and they should also come out and be witnesses as they will be protected.
Daniel Anekeya, the Vihiga Sub County Director of Education urged the crowd, addressing safety concerns for school-going children in Vihiga while strongly urging parents to enroll their children in the nearest schools to minimize long and unsafe distances.
Parents and guardians were strictly cautioned by Anekeya against allowing their children to board overloaded matatus and motorbikes, highlighting that overcrowding causes a severe risk to the safety and well-being of the students.
By Clara Simiyu and Quinter Vunyoli
