For 35 years now, the country has marked one of the historic moments when some politicians started the push for a multi-party democracy.

The original plan was to first form a political party – Kenya National Congress (KNC) – which was to be launched on July 1, 1990.

But Kenneth Matiba, who was leading the movement, leaked the plan, attracting the attention of security agencies who started tracing his footsteps.

Around that time, Matiba called a press conference in which he demanded the introduction of multi-party democracy. He also announced that there would be a rally on July 7 at Kamukunji in Nairobi.

Four days before the planned rally, Matiba, Raila, Rubia and other leaders were arrested, and as the push for a multiparty state continued, some faces have stood out to have championed the ambition.

Nevertheless, activists and protesters went ahead with the protests demanding an end to one-party rule, the introduction of multiparty democracy and an end to human rights abuses.

The push for the multi-party democracy was led by key political figures and firebrands, some of whom have died.

Kenneth Matiba

Kenneth Stanley Njindo Matiba was a Kenyan politician and an activist for democracy.

He served as Minister of Transport and Communications under the KANU administration, resigning in December 1988.

Matiba was part of the opposition alliance forming the Forum for Restoration of Democracy (FORD). After a long political career, Matiba died at Karen hospital in April 2018 aged 85.

Charles Rubia

Charles Rubia was the first African Mayor of Nairobi from 1963 to 1967 before he joined politics and got elected as Member of Parliament for Starehe and later joined the cabinet.

In 1990 Rubia was among the politicians leading the push for multi-party democracy and was consequently detained twice.

Having left the political arena unrecognised, Muranga University honored Rubia with ‘Doctor of Letters’ in 2018 for mobilizing the community in the establishment of Murang’a College of Technology.

A year later, around December 2019, Rubia died at 89 years old in his Karen home, Nairobi.

George Thenge

Nthenge was one of the six founders of the original Ford when multi-party politics returned to the country in the early 1990s.

During his time in politics, he served as a Member of Parliament for Iveti and was a member of LEGCO for the larger Machakos District in 1960.

He was one of the authors of Kenya’s first constitution and the team that traveled to Lancaster to agitate for Kenya’s freedom.

Between 1992 and 1997, he served as Kamukunji MP and is remembered as one of FORD’s founding members.

Martin Shikuku

Joseph Martin Shikuku Oyondi became the youngest member of the Kenyan delegation to Lancaster House Conferences (England), at only 28 years.

He was later detained by Kenyatta after the minister sarcastically referred to the KANU government as “dead” but was released in 1978 when Jomo Kenyatta died.

He served as Butere MP and rose to become a Cabinet Minister. He was also a founding member of FORD as the country yearned for multipartyism.

He later formed Ford Asili with Kenneth Matiba but the latter later left the party with Shikuku contesting 1997 presidential elections as the party’s flag bearer. Shikuku died aged 79 in 2012.

Jame Orengo

Currently Siaya Governor James Orengo was a key figure in the original 1990 Saba Saba protests.

Orengo became famous due to his fight against the unfair rule and spent several years in detention as a result. He was, together with six other MPs who brought about what was termed as Kenya’s second liberation.

They formed the formidable party FORD which troubled the then ruling party.

In 2002 Orengo vied for the presidency in 2002 for the Social Democratic Party but finished fourth.

 Between 2013 and 2017 Orengo served as Siaya Senator and in the 2022 General Election, He won the Siaya Governor Seat with the ODM party.

George Anyona

George Moseti Anyona was elected Kitutu Chache MP in the 1974 elections and became one of the firebrands in the August House.

In 1977, he was arrested within the precincts of parliament (an illegality in itself) for questioning the award of a tender for the supply of wagons to the then East African Railways.

During his political career, Anyona was arrested more than three times and at one point he and others were arrested and charged with sedition schemes to overthrow the Kenyan government in 1982. They were, however, released on bail in 1992.

In the 1992 elections, Anyona stood as a presidential candidate in the same elections and came out 5th. In 2003, he died in a road accident in Nairobi.

Masinde Muliro

He was a key figure in the fight for multi-party democracy in Kenya having quit teaching to join politics.

In 1957, he contested and won the Nyanza North Legislative Council seat as he continued with his political journey until 1989 when he joined politicians who were agitating for multi-party democracy. He died in 1992 at age 70.