The National Police Service (NPS) has dismissed allegations of a planned reshuffle aimed at addressing an imbalance in police officer numbers across various stations nationwide.
In a brief statement on Saturday afternoon, the service flagged a social media post falsely attributed to Patrick Tito, Principal Assistant to the Deputy Inspector General, which suggested a potential reshuffle.
The NPS described the claims as fake and misleading, urging the public to disregard the information.
"We advise the public to disregard the false information circulating on social media, which claims to originate from Patrick Tito, Principal Assistant to the Deputy Inspector General," the statement read.
The flagged social media account featured the photo of Tito, with the deliberate intention to create a false impression that the account was genuine and belonged to the police boss.
The post, shared widely on the internet, claimed that Tito had instructed heads of police stations to submit the names of excess officers for possible restructuring.
The misleading social media post claimed that the alleged reshuffle was prompted by complaints from some officers about imbalances in personnel numbers across certain stations.
The fake post stated: "NPS, through the office of the Deputy Inspector General, has noted with concern that a majority of stations and commands have not yet fully integrated former APS personnel."
It further added: "There is a significant imbalance in numbers within the stations, hence the directive to submit names of former APS and KPS officers to balance staffing levels across stations nationwide."
This is not the first time the police service has flagged social media accounts impersonating senior police officers. In November last year, the NPS took action against a Facebook account impersonating Deputy Inspector General Gilbert Masengeli.
In a statement, NPS warned Kenyans against interacting with accounts purporting to belong to Masengeli, further adding that the police boss does not run any social media account.
“We wish to caution the general public against interacting with the numerous fake accounts claiming to belong to DIG Gilbert Masengeli. These accounts are maintained by unscrupulous impostors with criminal intent to defraud unsuspecting individuals,” the NPS stated.
“Please note that DIG Gilbert Masengeli does not operate any personal social media accounts and only conducts his official duties through the NPS’s official communication platforms,” the service added.
