Sabina Chege: Interfering with Essential Services Amounts to Terrorism
During an interview on a local TV station on Tuesday, July 22, 2025, Chege called for clearer guidance on how the law should be interpreted and enforced.
Nominated Member of Parliament (MP) Sabina Chege. Photo/NTV Kenya.
By Juliet Jerotich
Nominated Member of Parliament (MP) Sabina Chege has declared that interference with essential services qualifies as an act of terrorism under Kenya’s anti-terrorism legislation.
During an interview on a local TV station on Tuesday, July 22, 2025, Chege called for clearer guidance on how the law should be interpreted and enforced.
She stressed that the Prevention of Terrorism Act covers more than the conventional definition of terrorism as actions carried out exclusively by external militant groups such as Al-Shabaab.
“This anti-terrorism law also addresses financing, recruitment, and training related to terrorism. We have traditionally viewed terrorism as something done by outsiders, such as Al-Shabaab and militia groups. However, this legislation explicitly includes interference with essential services as terrorism,” she explained.
“We must consider whether the law requires further amendments, clearer interpretation, or more explicit guidance because its scope is quite broad,” she added.
Referring to activist Boniface Mwangi, who was charged with illegal possession of ammunition connected to protests rather than “facilitating terrorist acts” as initially claimed by police, Chege underscored that activism should not be confused with terrorism.
“If authorities are charging people under the Terrorism Act, the fundamental questions are: Did anyone disrupt essential services? Was there violence? Were lives put at risk?” she questioned.
“Activism itself is not covered under the Anti-Terrorism Act, but acts that interfere with essential services, threaten lives, or incite violence are,” she clarified.
Chege called on lawmakers and legal institutions to evaluate whether the existing anti-terrorism laws need refinement or clearer interpretation to prevent misuse or misunderstanding by the public.
“I view the law like the Bible; much depends on individual interpretation. Just as some interpret certain Biblical passages to fit their own agendas, the same happens with the law,” she noted.
The arrest of Mwangi, especially the possibility of terrorism charges, drew widespread criticism, with human rights organizations condemning the move as an attempt to silence dissenting voices.
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