Lawyer Danstan Omari blamed the surge in cases of crime across the country to prosecution of police officers.
In an interview with NTV on Tuesday November 15, the lawyer opined that the police force is entangled in the politics of the country, arguing that officers now wait for orders from the head office instead of dealing with criminals on the spot.
“While executing their mandate police officers are supposed to use a firearm, but nowadays anytime an officer uses a firearm in the interest of citizens, IPOA arrests them” Omari stated.
He accused the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) of arbitrarily arresting officers who use their firearms instead of overseeing their mandate to work with the Internal Affairs Unit (IAU) to address any complaints.
Nine officers from the General Service Unit (GSU) recently filed a case against the Directorate of Public Prosecution (DPP) and IPOA at the Milimani Law Courts for falsely being arrested.
On the rising insecurity, Omari claimed it was caused by the disbandment of the Directorate of Criminal Investigation's (DCI's), Special Service Unit (SSU) and the arrest of eight police officers who served in the unit.
He argued the move on the critical police unit charged with fighting crime, was seen to cause a go-slow in the police service.
Omari also blamed the Superior Command Authority Law that stipulates an officer appointed to command a unit shall, irrespective of seniority, exercise command over all other officers serving therein.
On Monday, November 14, Interior Cabinet Secretary (CS) Prof. Kithure Kindiki announced a new command structure in a bid to contain the situation.
"Those boys who have dared the government and want to tell us that they can take over the city and make it a center of crime, we have heard you and we are coming effective immediately," the CS boldly proclaimed.
Inspector General (IG) of Police, Japhet Koome issued a one-month ultimatum to criminals in the country to surrender illegally owned weapons to the authorities.
On Friday November 11, Koome commanded officers to use extra force on offenders in the fight to restore normalcy.
"Anybody charged with committing a felony, murder, or rape attempts to escape, an officer can use a firearm." Koome declared.
Under the National Police Service Act of the Constitution, the law clearly stipulates that a police officer is allowed to use a firearm when protecting a persons life and property, in self-defence, when pursuing a convicted felon from escaping police custody and on citizens who attempt to rescue convicted persons.
However, a police officer is trained to use non-violent means first before firing a weapon, exhausting all other options to ensure the seriousness of the offence is equal to the intended objective.
