Chaos in Kutus after man, 25, dies as 'guard refuses to open dispensary gate'

Police in Kirinyaga County spent Wednesday night guarding Kutus Dispensary in Mwea East sub-county after angry residents attempted to set it on fire.

The unrest began when youths from Kutus town took a local footballer to the dispensary after he was injured during a game at the Kutus Primary School grounds. However, the dispensary watchman allegedly refused to open the gate.

Clement Kioni, 25, was later rushed to a nearby private hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

“The watchman refused to open the gate of a government facility that is supposed to help us,” said Peter Murimi, a resident.

Businesses in Kutus town were closed early after police officers from Wang'uru were called in to reinforce their counterparts already at the scene. The situation escalated into running battles between the youths and the police.

“We wanted to pass through the dispensary road, but police officers are everywhere. We had to close our businesses early because the dispensary management refused to give Clement first aid,” said Mary Wairimu, another resident.

Kioni’s body was taken to Kibugi Funeral Home, where it awaits a postmortem. Meanwhile, angry residents are demanding that the Kirinyaga County Government transfer all staff from Kutus Dispensary, accusing them of negligence.