‘We are not ready to be sold to the IMF,’ debt anger grows amongst Kenyans: Video
Anger at international lenders is spilling into Kenya’s streets as citizens and grassroots leaders demand alternatives to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank-led economic programmes.
At a public forum in Nairobi, Bonny Seme, speaker of a citizens’ parliament movement, told Viory that global institutions “cannot relate” to the everyday struggles of Kenyans. “You cannot relate a person whose culture is one of abundance to that of a person of a culture of struggling,” he said, adding, “It is upon them to come and ask us, what’s your opinion… We are the ones with solutions, not them.”
Seme warned that any government seen to be relying on opaque conditional loans would face relentless protests. “We are not ready as a population to support another regime that will go back, banking on hopes of being given money by the IMF under unclear conditions… We are not with you, protests will always be here,” he added.
Salim Mghanga, a local resident, accused successive administrations of borrowing and then siphoning funds offshore. “They borrow money from these institutions, then they steal it, take it back to London and Switzerland, leaving the people wallowing in poverty,” he said.
Fadhili Owino, another Nairobi resident, described international lenders as “business-oriented” and argued their programmes ignore the livelihoods of ordinary people. “IMF & World Bank don’t understand the reality of the situation in Kenya… They only give out loans because they are business-oriented,” he said, adding calls for greater self-reliance. “Africa is the richest continent in the world, yet it is the poorest in the world… We should exploit our mineral resources for the benefit of our people.”
This story is written and edited by the Global South World team, you can contact us here.
