Maraga Accuses Ruto and Suluhu of Forming ‘Axis of Tyranny’ Against Gen Z Protesters
Former Chief Justice David Maraga has delivered a sharp rebuke against President William Ruto and Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu, accusing the two East African leaders of building what he calls an “axis of tyranny” targeting youth-led protest movements across the region.
The warning follows Ruto’s high-profile state visit to Dar es Salaam, where both presidents aligned publicly against the growing wave of Gen Z activism challenging their administrations.
A Joint Front Against Youth Activism
The controversy erupted during a joint address at State House, Dar es Salaam, on Monday, May 4, 2026. President Suluhu openly called on Ruto to join her in “disciplining” young activists, whom she characterized as using democracy as a cover for destabilizing East Africa.
“There is no need to be divided, to celebrate the vices that happen on either side. If they show up in Kenya, they are ours as well, and we should jointly deal with them, and the same should be done in Tanzania,” Suluhu said.
The Tanzanian president went further, rejecting universal democratic standards and arguing that governance should instead reflect local cultural values. She framed her approach to handling dissenting youth as “tough love” and used bluntly physical language to make her point.
“The word democracy should not taint our countries and our cultures. It has no formula. Your democracy is not the same as our democracy. I told him we have to stand firm on this. That if they come to Tanzania, I whip them, and when they come to Kenya, you whip them. With that, we will have countries with respectful people,” she noted.
Suluhu confirmed that talks with Ruto centered specifically on containing youthful calls for accountability, portraying Gen Z activism as a direct threat to stability across the region.
“We were discussing with President Ruto on how to deal with the notorious Gen Z, and they want to cause chaos in East Africa. They want to destroy their democracies,” she said.
Maraga Raises the Alarm on Creeping Autocracy
Maraga, a vocal critic of the current administration who has declared presidential ambitions for 2027, responded quickly and forcefully. He warned that framing peaceful governance activism as chaos requiring cross-border repression strikes at the heart of constitutional democracy. In his view, the two presidents are not defending their democracies; they are dismantling them.
“Citizens of East Africa must speak up. The axis of tyranny that Presidents Suluhu and Ruto are constructing threatens to return our region to autocracy,” said Maraga.
The former Chief Justice called the rhetoric “abhorrent,” particularly given what he described as a documented pattern of state-sponsored violence in Tanzania.
A Dangerous Record of Human Rights Violations
Maraga’s concern carries significant weight when placed against recent findings by a Commission of Inquiry led by retired Chief Justice Mohamed Chande Othman. That commission found that over 518 people died during Tanzania’s 2025 general elections, with many victims killed by gunshot wounds and others dying from fatal trauma and related injuries.
Against this backdrop, Maraga argued that the “disciplining” language used by Suluhu and Ruto is not abstract political posturing; it reflects a pattern of real, documented abuse. He pointed specifically to the harrowing cases of Kenyan activist Boniface Mwangi and Ugandan activist Agather Atuhaire.
Between May 19 and May 23, 2025, both activists were reportedly tortured and sexually assaulted by Tanzanian police after traveling to Tanzania to observe the treason trial of opposition leader Tundu Lissu. Their treatment, Maraga argued, is precisely what “whipping” dissenters looks like in practice.
The post Maraga Accuses Ruto and Suluhu of Forming ‘Axis of Tyranny’ Against Gen Z Protesters appeared first on Nairobi Wire.