Students from Sigalagala National Polytechnic on Friday stormed the home of 22-year-old Derrick Machanja, who was shot dead by police during the May 18 #RejectFuelPrices protests in Kakamega town, and seized his body for a procession in town after it was reportedly sneaked into the village at night under heavy security.
Machanja, popularly known as “Mwala,” was an engineering student at Sigalagala National Polytechnic and also worked as a tuk tuk rider during school breaks to support himself.
According to residents and fellow students, the body was secretly transported to his home in the Lubao area in the middle of the night in an apparent move to avoid planned processions by tuk-tuk operators and boda-boda riders, who had vowed to organize a send-off in his honor.
The procession had reportedly been banned by county authorities.
The development sparked outrage among students, Gen Z protesters, and transport operators, who first gathered at Kakamega Funeral Home only to learn that the body had already been taken to the village.
The group later intercepted the body and returned it to Sigalagala before beginning a long procession through Khayega and Maraba, the area where Machanja was reportedly shot.
The emotional procession caused heavy traffic disruption within Kakamega CBD as hundreds of riders and mourners joined the convoy. Motorists were forced to seek alternative routes as tensions remained high throughout the day.
Machanja is among at least four people reported dead during the nationwide anti-fuel price protests witnessed in different parts of the country. Friends described him as a hardworking young man struggling to balance education and hustling through tuk-tuk operations. Residents said he was the only son in his family, with reports indicating that his mother has been battling mental illness.
