A Nairobi businesswoman has emotionally recounted the harrowing hours she spent in fear and prayer after news broke that goons had attacked her commercial building during the Gen Z protests in the city.

Luckily for Emmah Ambetsa Bulali, who owns three retail halls at the OTC Wholesale Mall in Nairobi's Central Business District (CBD), her businesses survived.

She told that she was left restless and anxious after learning from media reports that the ground floor of her building had been vandalised by rioters.

Emmah described the challenges of maintaining a business in Nairobi CBD, noting that she employs around 20 Gen Z staff across three halls, each of which requires substantial rent.

She said that despite facing financial pressures and relying on bank loans to stay afloat, she often sacrifices her comfort to avoid laying off any of her employees.

“Sometimes when things get hard in business, I contemplate stopping some people from working, but when I think about the fact that this is where they get their daily bread, I just tell God to give me grace,” she said.

Her worries were compounded when she tried checking on her CCTV to keep tabs on what was happening, but it wasn't showing anything.

For the entire evening, Emmah sat in her house and grappled with what would befall her business.

"The management was unreachable; I guess they were overwhelmed by phone calls," she recounted.

Lost in thought, she made a heartfelt prayer, entrusting her business to divine protection and reminding God how much the business means to her and the families it feeds.

Unable to wait for daylight, Emmah left home at 5 am, arriving in town an hour later using public transport as she lacked the strength to drive.

What she found next brought her to her knees.

"When I reached and found my business was safe, I knelt down and thanked God," she said.

In a sad story, Nairobi businesswoman Yvonne Atieno cried bitterly after stock worth KSh 2 million was looted during the Gen Z protests.

Yvonne, who buried her husband just seven months ago, disclosed that she had been trying to hold her family together through the business.

In a tearful video, the widow narrated that she was at her home in Ongata Rongai when she received a call from a friend informing her that shops around the Bus Station were being looted.

The businesswoman quickly contacted a security guard in the area to ask about the condition of her shop, only to receive heartbreaking news.

Source: TUKO.co.ke