Police on Friday declared they had allowed organisers of the Saba Saba meeting at Kamukunji Grounds in Nairobi to go ahead with their plans.

 Nairobi police boss Adamson Bungei said they had allowed the organisers of the events to hold the meetings at Kamukunji Grounds only and not in the Central Business District.

 Some businesses remained closed in the morning hours most likely because of fears of chaos.

 Police on Friday declared they had allowed organisers of the Saba Saba meeting at Kamukunji Grounds in Nairobi to go ahead with their plans.

 Nairobi police boss Adamson Bungei said they had allowed the organisers of the events to hold the meetings at Kamukunji Grounds only and not in the Central Business District.

 Some businesses remained closed in the morning hours most likely because of fears of chaos.

 “They should hold the rally at Kamukunji and not come to the Central Business District,” said Bungei.

 This came as police engaged a group in running battles along Thika Road after they blocked the road.

 The group used bonfires to block the inbound traffic for a while before anti-riot police arrived and dispersed them.

 This led to a brief chase and stone-throwing by the group who locals said looked strange and not from the area.

 One vehicle had its windows damaged in the chaos.Police said there were pockets of disruption and disturbances in some city's informal settlements but things were calm.

 Azimio La Umoja Coalition and groups of civil societies have called for protests on Friday, July 7 to mark Saba Saba Day, which is usually associated with the struggle for a multiparty system.

 Rains and heavy presence of police welcomed the start of the planned Saba Saba events in Nairobi on Friday morning.

 Police mounted roadblocks on roads around the State House ahead of the planned street protests in the city.

 Officers deployed on the roadblocks were forced to retreat to their lorries and vehicles due to the rains.

 Other officers were seen patrolling city streets and informing any group to disperse.

 There were few pedestrians on the streets. Police dispersed a group that tried to stage a protest in Mathare on Friday morning.

 No one was injured but locals protested the police move, saying it was provocative.

 The protests will also mark the start of a new chapter to protest the high cost of living in the country occasioned by the political class after the passage of the Finance Act 2023.

The organisers said their protests to take place across the country will be peaceful.