Masked armed gunmen attack DCP truck at Pembroke Bridge ahead of Ol Kalou Campaign

A campaign truck associated with former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua’s Democracy for Citizens Party (DCP) campaign team was attacked and partially set ablaze on Saturday, July 11, in Gilgil, as political tensions continued to rise ahead of the July 16 Ol Kalou parliamentary by-election.

The incident reportedly occurred at Pembroke Bridge, where videos showed supporters aboard the branded campaign truck moments before it came under attack from individuals who hurled objects believed to be stones.

The footage captured women and men who had been campaigning atop the truck screaming for help as the attack unfolded, with several people seen jumping off the vehicle and fleeing for safety.

In a separate amateur video recorded shortly after the incident, two men dressed in black were seen pelting the stationary truck with stones before thick smoke was seen billowing from the vehicle in what appeared to be an arson attack.

“Our truck is on fire. Do you have a fire extinguisher?” one of the occupants was heard pleading with motorists who had stopped near the scene as smoke billowed from the campaign vehicle.

The truck, which was wrapped in DCP party colours, sustained visible damage.

The whereabouts of the driver remained unclear immediately after the incident amid claims from party officials that he had been taken away by the attackers.

The claims had not been independently verified by this publication at the time of running this story.

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Rose Gakuo, a communications official in the office of the DCP party boss, Gachagua, alleged that armed individuals were behind the attack and claimed the driver had been abducted.

“Situation at Pembroke Bridge, Gilgil, where a DCP truck has been attacked by armed thugs. Driver abducted. Truck set on fire. But IEBC has no idea who is behind a violent election,” Gakuo said in a statement shared online.

As of the time of publication, neither the National Police Service (NPS) nor Gachagua had publicly commented on the circumstances surrounding the attack or confirmed the allegations made by DCP officials.

The incident comes barely days after the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) warned that the Ol Kalou by-election could be postponed or even cancelled if insecurity and breaches of the electoral code of conduct continue.

IEBC Chairperson Erastus Ethekon cited reports of election-related violence, voter bribery and illegal night campaigns, warning that the commission could also disqualify candidates found culpable if the incidents persist.

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