By Joshua Cheloti

Azimio leader Raila Odinga has claimed the police attempted to kill him and former Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka during Monday’s protests in Nairobi.

Addressing a media briefing in Nairobi, a day after the protests, Raila claimed the police deployed to counter the protestors shot at their cars.

However, none of them was harmed by the said police bullets.

“There was an attempt on the life of both Raila Odinga and Kalonzo Musyoka. Their cars were shot at, but luckily, they were unharmed,” the ODM leader said while reading a statement.

He also expressed concerns over the manner in which the police responded to their protests.

According to the former Prime Minister, the police used unnecessary force in handling protestors that had turned up for their mass action.

He said it was a shame that the police used so many resources to deal with peaceful demonstrators at a time the country is facing insecurity in the North Rift region and other parts of the country.

“We remain horrified and disgusted by the police response. At a time the county is going through major security challenges…where bandits and criminals appear to have taken charge, we were shocked that police could assemble so many personnel and so much equipment to confront peaceful protestors,” added the ODM leader.

Heavily armed anti-riot officers were deployed across Nairobi City on Monday, as the government sought to ensure the opposition does not stage protests in the city centre.

The police engaged protestors in running battles and when the former Prime Minister and his entourage later joined the demos, police fired teargas canisters and water cannons at their convoy numerous times as it tried to snake its way into the city centre.

A statement by the Inspector General of Police Japhet Koome indicated that at least 31 police officers were injured during the protests and 10 police cars were damaged.

Koome further said over 200 protestors were arrested, most of who were those in Nairobi.

The police boss however commended the officers deployed to handle the demonstration for acting professionally despite the provocation that they faced.

“Despite their provocation against police, our officers executed their national security mandate professionally, upholding the rule of law and utmost respect for human rights,” IG Koome said in the statement.