The Inspector General (IG) of Police Joseph Boinett on Wednesday issued a new directive indicating that anyone caught firing in the air anyhow will be prosecuted.
The IG issued the order following an incident where gunshots were fired at the Orange Democratic Movement(ODM) headquarters after rowdy youth stormed the party offices.
Boinett noted that there had been increased cases of people firing in the air and warned that there will be no favouritism in the crackdown against those contravening the law.
"We have noticed a tendency of individuals firing in the air anyhow thereby causing unnecessary panic. Anybody falling afoul of the firearms Act will certainly face the full sanctions of that law."
“We shall enforce all relevant laws with the necessary firmness and impartiality without favouring any persons irrespective of their political persuasion. We wish to remind political parties to comply with provisions of the Public Order Act and desist from actions that breach that law,” Boinett noted.
The IG also cautioned all security officers and licensed firearm holders against misusing their arms indicating that the police service would deal with all offenders in accordance with the law.
“Any licensed firearms holder or police officer will not be allowed to misuse firearms. We will deal with such cases in accordance with the law,” he noted.
The IG noted that enough measures had been put in place to ensure the forthcoming polls are successful and that the service would work with the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to ensure the politicians causing chaos during primaries are held to account.
The police boss further mentioned that the service had mapped the country to identify sensitive regions where violence was likely to occur and had put in place plans to stop the occurrence of violence in the areas.
“We’ve identified hot spots for purposes of designing and providing appropriate policing solutions,” the IG stated.
