Naema Celestine 
| Leah Nelima |
The Kenyan president, William Ruto, accused the US-based Ford Foundation on Tuesday of subsidizing “anarchy” and homicidal anti-government riots. The foundation, however, denied the allegations.
The demonstrations, which began as nonviolent protests spearheaded by Kenyans of the Gen Z generation against proposed tax hikes, have turned into a larger campaign against Ruto and his administration, throwing the East African powerhouse into political anarchy.
Since the protests started a month ago, several people have died; the worst day was June 25, when irate crowds stormed parliament and police opened fire on demonstrators.
On Monday, Ruto addressed a sizable gathering and criticized the Ford Foundation, asking, “That money they are giving out to sponsor violence, how are they going to benefit?”
“If they are going to sponsor violence in Kenya, if they are going to sponsor anarchy, we are going to call them out and we are going to tell them that they either style up or they leave.”
The Ford Foundation pushed back in a statement on Tuesday, saying: “We do not fund or sponsor the recent protests against the finance bill.”
According to the statement, the organization upholds a “strictly non-partisan policy for all of our grantmaking.” The organization has been giving grants to civil and rights groups throughout the nation for decades.
In spite of this, the Ford Foundation declared that “we repudiate any actions or speech that are hateful or advocate violence against any institution, individual, or community” and that it backed Kenyans’ rights to peaceful campaigning.
The organization, which was founded in 1936 by Edsel Ford, the son of Henry Ford, the founder of Ford Motor Company, works to improve social justice and democratic values all around the world.
Ruto, who is working feverishly to contain the largest crisis of his almost two-year presidency, has already charged unidentified foreign actors with fomenting instability amid the protests.
Although there hasn’t been as much street protesting lately, campaigners have urged for more on Tuesday.
