The National Youth Service (NYS) has responded to a viral video doing rounds on social media where two of its officers were caught mercilessly beating up a civilian passenger aboard one of its vehicles.
In a statement issued on August 7, the institution said it had taken disciplinary action against the two officers who were recorded on video carrying out the despicable act without regard for the wellbeing of the passenger.
In the video, the NYS officers can be seen shouting expletives at the passenger who was seated and who tried to protect himself from the blows coming his way.
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"Our attention is drawn to a clip doing rounds in social media, of NYS personnel involved in an altercation with an unidentified man. This action doesn't portray what we believe in as a service. Our Internal Affairs Unit has already taken disciplinary action against the personnel involved," wrote NYS in a statement on their official Twitter page.
The man who NYS describes as an "unidentified man" is believed to be a civilian understood to have been traveling in the commute vehicle. The officers assaulting him accused the man of insulting a lady NYS officer.
He did not retaliate to the officers assaulting him.
In the video, one officer is heard asking the civilian on the receiving end of the assault to brace for more beating, and the officer could be seen looking for a more effective assault device, opting to use a whip.
Kenya's disciplined units have had a reputation of attacking civilians without fear of repercussion, even with the incidents being captured on video.
In 2018, police officers in Londiani road off Likoni Rd, Industrial Area were involved in an altercation where the officers stepped on a civilian's neck who had been lying helplessly.
Police have also been seen assaulting civilians past curfew hours, with videos showing the officers assaulting them rather than arresting them.
Most recently, two brothers in Embu County were reported to have died at the hands of police in a case being investigated by the Independent Policing Oversight Authority.
Civilians suffer at the hands of police officers, while police on the other hand enjoy the protection of the law. According to section 103 (a) of the 2011 National Police Service Act No. 11 (A), offenses related to the assault of police can attract a fine of up to 1 million shillings, imprisonment for a term of up to ten years, or both.
