A viral video showing a school-going boy allegedly being forced to drink alcohol by a group of young people has sparked outrage among Kenyans, with celebrities and social media users calling on the police and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) to intervene.
The footage, whose circumstances have not been independently established, appears to show a minor in school uniform being encouraged or forced to consume an alcoholic drink while several young people watch.
The incident has triggered widespread condemnation, particularly because of the apparent involvement of adults.
Obinna demands police action
Media personality Oga Obinna was among those who reacted strongly after being tagged in the video.
Taking to social media, Obinna expressed disbelief that three grown men could allegedly participate in such an incident while three girls sat nearby watching.
He wrote:
“Kindly tagg the POLICE!! I mean WTF🙆🏿🙆🏿🤦🏿♂️🤦🏿♂️ THREE GROWNUP DUDES DPING THIS BS AND 3 GIRLS SITTED WATCHING🤦🏿♂️🤦🏿♂️🤦🏿♂️🤦🏿♂️🤦🏿♂️🤦🏿♂️🤦🏿♂️🤦🏿♂️ At what point do people stop and talk and refuse to ba part of mediocrity🤦🏿♂️.”
Obinna’s reaction was effectively a call for authorities to identify the people in the footage and establish what exactly happened.
In a follow-up appeal, he urged the DCI to take action, according to reports on the controversy.
Liz Jackson joins calls for arrests
Digital creator and activist Liz Jackson also condemned the incident, saying she was disturbed by the footage and calling for those responsible to face the law.
Jackson said she had chosen not to repost the video because of its disturbing nature, while urging authorities to investigate and arrest those involved.
She also reminded Kenyans that the law prohibits supplying alcohol to people under the age of 18.
Under Kenya’s Alcoholic Drinks Control Act, knowingly selling, supplying or providing an alcoholic drink to a person below 18 is an offence.
The law provides for a fine of up to Sh150,000, imprisonment for up to one year, or both, upon conviction.
Netizens demand accountability
The video has also generated angry reactions from social media users, with many questioning why the people present allegedly failed to intervene.
Some Kenyans argued that recording such an incident instead of stopping it amounted to normalising behaviour that could put a child at risk.
Others called for the identities of those involved to be established through an investigation rather than relying solely on social media outrage.
One of the central questions raised online has been whether the people surrounding the boy understood that he was a minor and, if so, why they allegedly allowed the situation to continue.
Child protection concerns
The controversy comes amid continued concern over the exposure of children and teenagers to alcohol and other harmful substances.
Kenya’s Children Act provides a broader legal framework for protecting children from abuse and harmful substances, while the Alcoholic Drinks Control Act specifically restricts the provision of alcohol to people under 18.
The incident has therefore shifted the conversation beyond the viral video itself to the responsibilities of adults when they encounter children being exposed to potentially harmful situations.
Recent enforcement operations have also shown that Kenyan authorities continue to take alcohol-related offences seriously.
In September 2026, NACADA reported the arrest of 11 people during a crackdown on counterfeit alcoholic products across several Nairobi sub-counties.
Calls for DCI investigation
As the footage continues circulating online, pressure is mounting on the authorities to establish where the incident occurred, identify the people involved and determine whether any offences were committed.
For Obinna and other Kenyans who have reacted, the bigger issue is not simply the viral nature of the footage but the apparent treatment of a child in the presence of adults.
Whether the people captured in the video will face legal action, however, would depend on investigations and evidence establishing the circumstances surrounding the incident.
For now, the online chorus remains clear: Kenyans want the authorities to investigate and protect the minor involved.
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