13th June 2026
STATEMENT ON THE DEATH OF EUGENE MUTUKU AND THE URGENT NEED FOR SAFER, ACCOUNTABLE PUBLIC TRANSPORT IN KENYA
Flone Initiative has followed with deep sorrow the tragic and preventable death of Eugene Mutuku, a Kenya Medical Training College (KMTC) student, whose life was cut short while using public transport. We extend our heartfelt condolences to his family, friends, and the KMTC community.
This is not an isolated incident. According to the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA), Kenya records over 4,000 road deaths annually, with more than 1,100 fatalities reported in the first quarter of 2025 alone. Pedestrians, passengers and motorcyclists continue to bear the heaviest burden of a transport system that too often prioritises speed and profit over human life.
These are not just statistics. They are people. And these deaths are preventable.
Flone Initiative wishes to state as follows:
The repeated occurrence of such tragedies reflects systemic failures in enforcement, regulation, and accountability, not the failures of individual passengers who simply tried to get from one place to another. When incidents of this nature continue to take lives without translating into sustained, structural reform, the State is failing the very people it is obligated to protect.
Mobility is a human right. It must be grounded in safety, dignity and accountability for every passenger, on every route, at every hour of the day.
We therefore call on:
- The National Police Service and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) to ensure a timely, transparent, and thorough investigation into Eugene’s death and to hold all responsible parties fully accountable.
- Transport regulators and the NTSA to move beyond reactive responses and implement lasting preventive measures, including stricter enforcement of passenger safety standards, mandatory operator training, and robust accountability mechanisms for SACCOs and transport operators.
- The Government of Kenya must treat road and passenger safety as the public health and human rights emergency that it is, and adequately resource the reforms required to address it.
- The public transport SACCOs to ensure that their operators are trained on customer service and safety
Justice for Eugene must mean more than accountability for one incident. It must mean a transport system where no family receives the news his family received. Flone Initiative will continue to advocate, lobby and push for the systemic change that every Kenyan passenger deserves.
Naomi Mwaura
Executive Director, Flone Initiative
Media Enquiries: communications@floneinitiative.org | www.floneinitiative.org | Nairobi, Kenya