Makau Mutua, Ex-CS Muturi Clash Over Ruto’s New Committee

Former Public Service Cabinet Secretary Justin Muturi, on Monday, August 18, poked holes in President William Ruto’s special coordinating framework to compensate victims of violent demonstrations and public protests that have occurred since 2017, alleging several legal provisions which the president overlooked.
Muturi, who has emerged as one of the fiercest critics of the Kenya Kwanza government since he was ousted from public service, took on Makau Mutua on X, formerly Twitter, as he claimed the committee was not necessary to compensate the victims.
According to Muturi, the provisions of the Victims Protection Act 2014 were sufficient to make payouts to the victims; hence, there was no need for new legislation.
“With regard to the Makau Mutua-led outfit, I would like to state that all that is needed is the full implementation of the Victim Protection Act, 2014,” Muturi observed.
“We don’t need any new legislation, as the joint PG is saying. Just Google that Act and you will see it has enough provisions to cater for victims of crimes.”
In a surprise rejoinder, Makau Mutua took a swipe at the former CS, explaining that the Victim Protection Act had little to no provisions on compensation.
“I don’t think you’ve read the Victim Protection Act. If you had, you would know that it’s not viable for the initiative the President announced,” Makau Mutua said in his response.
According to the professor, for victims of protests to fully realise their rights and compensation, the Victims Protection Act needed to be thoroughly revised.
The Victims Protection Act provides a framework for recognising and protecting the rights of victims of crime. On the issue of compensation, Section 23(1) of the act states, “A victim has a right to restitution or compensation from the offender and the enforcement thereof in accordance with this Act.”
On August 8, Makau Mutua was appointed to lead thecompensation initiative, with the new team being given a 120-day timeline to complete its work.
The issue of victims’ compensation came to light after protests in 2023, led by the Azimio la Umoja coalition. To avert further tensions, the opposition at the time and the Kenya Kwanza government formed theNational Dialogue Committee (NADCO), with one of the key recommendations from the report being the establishment of a fund to compensate victims of the 2023 protests.
President Ruto’s government was in tandem with the NADCO process, but the state’s stance came into question in June and July 2025 following their stance over a fresh wave of protests. During this time, Human Rights Groups and victims’ families were the biggest advocates for compensation.