The Law Society of Kenya has threatened to sue Nairobi Region Police Commander Adamson Bungei over alleged interference with the ongoing protests within the Nairobi Central Business District (CBD).
In a notice directed to the Nairobi police boss, LSK President Faith Odhiambo accused Bungei of unlawfully deploying his officers to interfere with the peaceful protests.
The lawyers called on the police commander to immediately withdraw the police officers and accord the demonstrators the leeway to carry on with their democratic rights.
According to LSK, failure by the police boss to withdraw the officers from the city centre would prompt it to file a petition in court against him.
“We demand that Bungei calls off his directive immediately and instructs his officers to stand down from making any arbitrary arrest or meting violence against the protestors,” read part of a statement by LSK.
“We are closely monitoring today's events and will take legal action to find Bungei and any officer who violates the rights of the protestors on account of his instructions personally liable for any breaches of the Constitution and the National Police Service Act," the statement added.
The lawyers further argued that the officers were mandated with the role of providing security to the protestors and not interfering with their activities.
"We wish to sound our unequivocal warning to Bungei and all officers acting under his command from taking any act of aggression against the protestors in the name of giving effect to the irrational directive," the LSK boss noted.
LSK's demand comes hours after Adamson Bungei warned against the planned protests within the Nairobi CBD.
While addressing the press, Bungei argued that no one had applied for a gathering or picketing permit as recommended by the law.
"We have heightened our patrols within the CBD to ensure there is no disruption of businesses. Nobody applied for any license or permit to do the protests," claimed the police boss.
He noted that police officers have already been mobilized to ensure that any gathering within the Nairobi CBD is dispersed instantly.
