CCTV footage showing General Service Unit officers assaulting activist Boniface Mwangi at a building in Nairobi's Central Business District.
On Friday, October 8, Mwangi narrated that it all begun after two men allegedly attempted to arrested the receptionist of a barbershop he had visited without revealing the reasons for the apprehension.
The activist says he asked the two men to identify themselves and produce their work identifications but neither of them had any. The activist told the officers that he would not allow them to take away the lady without proper information and documentation.
After the activist blocked the two from picking up the lady, they called a woman whom they identified as their superior and an alleged employee of the Nairobi Metropolitan Services (NMS).
A confrontation then ensued after the woman purportedly working for NMS confronted Mwangi for allegedly recording the altercation.
As the altercation escalated, some GSU officers joined in demanding that the activist surrenders his phone and an attempt to grab it from him failed.
The GSU officers chased Mwangi inside the building and when he fell down, they rained blows and kicks on him as others tried to take away his phone.
"I was at my barbershop when these young men walked in, with a GSU officer and arrested the receptionist. We asked them to identify themselves. We asked them to call someone who had an ID," Mwangi narrated.
"Because l recorded them, the GSU officers wanted to take my phone, I refused and in my attempt to run away, I fell. They caught up with me and beat me up. Even after the beating, l didn’t hand over my phone," he added.
Mwangi says that he sustained injuries on his leg. He has called out the officers over the continued brutality meted on individuals.
"Because we raised our voices, not a single person was arrested in the entire building. l was slightly injured. The harassment and the brutalization of innocent citizens going about their business was captured on the building’s CCTV."
In the past, Mwangi has been at the forefront in criticising the police service over its reluctance to address police brutality and violation of human rights.
Mwangi says that many confrontations between Kenyans and the police could be explained by their training, which he maintained was designed to teach them that citizens were their mortal enemy.
Mwangi further urged the police to unionize and fight for their rights, additionally asking them to be humane as they go about their work.
He also called for Kenyans to remember police officers were their brothers and sisters, noting that Kenya would be a much better place if police worked closely with regular citizens such as himself to take down those ruining the country.
