The 2025 Kenya National Drama Festivals in Nakuru descended into chaos on Thursday, April 10, after students from Butere Girls High School staged a dramatic walkout and protest over alleged harassment and censorship, triggering a wider student revolt.
Butere Girls was scheduled to perform their controversial play, Echoes of War, but the girls stunned the audience when they took to the stage at 8:00 a.m., sang the national anthem, and walked off in protest.
The students accused organizers of deliberately sabotaging their performance by denying them basic stage necessities—microphones, props, costumes, and even an audience. “We were being harassed by police. They took us to the stage with nothing. We had no director and no equipment,” said one visibly shaken student.
Videos that have since gone viral show students fleeing the stage area, chanting and demanding the presence of their director, former UDA Secretary General Cleophas Malala. The students could be heard shouting, “We want to perform, and we want our director. It is our right to perform.”
Efforts by organizers to calm the group failed as the protests spilled outside the Melvin Jones Hall, drawing students from other schools in solidarity. The scene quickly escalated as anti-government chants echoed across the venue, prompting a swift and forceful response from police.
In a move that sparked public outrage, officers reportedly lobbed teargas canisters into the venue, dispersing crowds and forcing many students to flee to their buses in fear and confusion.
The controversy intensified Wednesday night after Malala, the scriptwriter behind Echoes of War, was arrested under unclear circumstances and is currently being held at Eldama Ravine Police Station. His arrest came just hours before the planned performance, further fueling claims of political interference.
As questions mount over censorship and student rights, critics are now demanding accountability from the Ministry of Education and security agencies. Meanwhile, Butere Girls’ walkout has become a powerful national moment—raising serious concerns about freedom of expression, artistic liberty, and political overreach in Kenya’s education system.
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