The national government has rolled out an SMS service to enable members of the public to report crimes and cases of illegalities in the course of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Government Spokesperson Cyrus Oguna on Wednesday, May 20, announced this, further assuring that details of the informant would be completely anonymous.
"Text 988 to report any illegal activities happening around you. You can be sure that your number will be anonymous thus cannot be shared, just in case you are worried about being exposed to the public," Oguna's message reads in part.
While reporting an incident, one would be required to input the name of the county, and the area/estate the illegal activity was taking place. The government assured that your personal number would not be recorded and the service would be completely free.
Oguna argued that the service would come a long way in helping the government curb crime during the pandemic. He urged members of the public to embrace the service and help in the fight against crime.
Through the initiative, Kenyans would be able to report not only perpetrators of hard crime but also those flouting the safety measures issued by the government through the Ministry of Health in the fight against Covid-19.
Kenyans failing to social distance, wear face masks, as well as public entities such as eateries and transport service providers who fail to adhere to given directives would be narrowed in on.
The initiative followed reports of people openly flouting the rules, and criminals taking advantage of the curfew and cessation of movement orders to orchestrate crime across the country.
While delivering on the daily Covid-19 briefing on Tuesday, May 19, Health CS Mutahi Kagwe noted that the porous borders had become a challenge in the fight against the pandemic.
This is as a result of people seeking in and out of the country, as well as the locked-down areas of Eastleigh, Nairobi, and Old Town, Mombasa.
Kagwe urged members of the public to report such cases to curb further spread of the virus in the country.
The SMS service will now allow Kenyans to raise alarm on illegal activities, or movements in their vicinities.
Text 988 to report any illegal activities happening around you. You can be sure that your number will be anonymous thus cannot be shared, just in case you are worried about being exposed to the public.#KomeshaCorona pic.twitter.com/Y7gwpy3GWw
— Spokesperson GoK (@SpokespersonGoK) May 20, 2020
