Nominated Senator Gloria Orwoba has risen to the defence of women criticised by their partners for spending transport money meant to facilitate visits, insisting that men have no right to be outraged—because they too are equally guilty of the same habit.
Speaking to a local television station on Wednesday, April 23, 2025, Orwoba sharply criticised men who go as far as assaulting—or, in extreme cases, even killing—their female partners over fare disputes, insisting they should reflect on the fact that no woman has ever laid a hand on them when the roles were reversed.
According to Orwoba, it is both unfair and dangerously ignorant for society to keep painting this as a women-only offence, arguing that men, too, not only eat fare but sometimes push boundaries far worse—like fleeing with their partner’s car the moment they’re offered a lift or a bit of trust.
“How many of these men have eaten our fare, and we never killed them? Who told you men don’t eat fare? They eat everything. They even leave with our cars. And yet they’re alive and walking around Nairobi,” she said, switching between English and Kiswahili.
Orwoba, visibly emotional, was addressing the growing wave of femicide cases, some of which, after investigations, have been linked to disputes over transport money. The senator expressed deep disappointment at the disturbing trend, calling for an urgent end to the culture of violence and entitlement.
She insisted that under no circumstance should a man resort to assaulting a woman, adding that such behaviour cannot be justified—no matter the context.
“So stop killing us. There is absolutely no justification for killing a woman. You cannot assume it’s okay—even if we’re out there trying to make a living,” she said emphatically.
At one point, Orwoba gave a personal example to drive the message home. She asked hypothetically whether, if she were to become a sex worker, society would suddenly deem it fit to kill her simply because of her chosen profession.
She further compared the perception of sex workers to that of lawyers—another profession that, she noted, often attracts public disdain.
“Just yesterday I was dealing with the case of a woman who was drugged on a Mash Poa bus, and I kept wondering: what money was she even looking for? Now imagine I’m a commercial sex worker—does that justify killing me? Because I’ve chosen a certain trade? People also don’t like lawyers—should we now begin murdering lawyers because of the nature of their work? There is no justification for killing a woman, whether she was looking for love, money, or anything else,” she added.
Call to action
While concluding, Orwoba underscored her commitment to addressing the scourge of gender-based violence, stating that she and her colleagues were actively working on amending the Penal Code to ensure such acts are dealt with more seriously.
She went a step further and urged President William Ruto not to drag his feet, saying he should immediately declare femicide a national disaster, warning that the ongoing killings could spiral into a generational crisis since women—who are the givers of life—are being wiped out.
“We know it’s already a crime, but we’re working on amendments to the Penal Code under the harassment clause. And I strongly believe the president should declare femicide a national disaster. With that declaration comes a budget and additional tools we urgently need. Men don’t give birth—this is a national disaster because an entire generation is at risk of being wiped out,” she declared.