Homa Bay Town Member of Parliament (MP) Peter Kaluma has called on the government to ban the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) from operating in Kenya.
This is after the global broadcaster premiered a documentary on YouTube, on Monday, April 28, 2025, which identified some of the Kenyan security forces that shot at the youthful anti-government protesters on June 25, 2024.
Taking to his official X account on Monday, April 28, Kaluma argued that the role played by the media in any democracy is too important to be discharged irresponsibly.
“BAN @BBCAfrica IN KENYA. The role played by the media in any democracy is too important to be discharged irresponsibly. The media can build greater democracy or destroy an otherwise stable state,” the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) lawmaker stated.
Kaluma on genocide
Kaluma further argued that the 1994 Rwandan genocide could not have occurred if the media had not been reckless.
He went ahead to claim the BBC documentary dubbed “Blood Parliament”, which has continued to attract mixed reactions, is twisted, partial, reckless and intended to incite chaos in Kenya.
The lawmaker now wants the relevant Kenyan authorities to act by withdrawing the BBC operational licence.
“Lest we forget, the Rwandan genocide would not have occurred were it not for reckless media. “Blood Parliament” documentary by @BBCAfrica is twisted, partial, reckless and intended to incite chaos in Kenya. The relevant agencies of the Government of Kenya must act fast to withdraw the @BBCAfrica licence in Kenya,” Kaluma wrote on X.
The BBC documentary
The 37-minute exposé by the BBC released on YouTube on Monday, April 28, 2025, meticulously reconstructs the events of that fateful day, using 3D modelling, forensic video analysis, and eyewitness accounts to piece together the shootings that shocked the nation.
On June 25, 2024, tens of thousands of largely Gen Z protesters flooded Nairobi’s streets, rallying against the Finance Bill 2024, a sweeping piece of legislation that proposed new taxes.
Despite fierce opposition both inside and outside Parliament, the bill passed by a vote of 195 to 106, triggering an eruption of fury among demonstrators gathered outside the National Assembly.
Minutes after the vote, the first fatalities occurred on Parliament Road. According to the documentary, David Chege, a 39-year-old software engineer and Sunday school teacher, and Ericsson Mutisya, a 25-year-old butcher, were shot dead in cold blood.
Using three-dimensional reconstruction, the BBC captured harrowing footage of the moment police advanced on protesters.
One officer, seen kneeling down, opened fire indiscriminately, killing Chege and Mutisya and injuring at least five others.
The violence escalated when protesters stormed the Parliament complex itself, breaching the chambers for the first time in Kenya’s post-independence history.