Stop intimidating your juniors, senior officers told

Sgt. Mutheu Mwangangi before the vetting panel chaired by Johnston Kavuludi at Kakamega Golf hotel on August 16, 2016. PHOTO: BENJAMIN SAKWA

Senior police officers have been asked not to intimidate their juniors or turn them into money extortion machines.

The request was made when Senior Sergeant Scolastica Mwangangi of Matunda patrol base appeared before the ongoing police vetting in Kakamega. It emerged that she had numerous mobile money transactions on her phone.

Her mobile phone transactions indicated that she had consistently transferred between Sh32,000 and Sh125,000 to the seniors at her base.

She also had transfers of small amounts to senior officers outside her workstation besides receiving constant transfers through her mobile number.

The National Police Service Commission (NPSC) marvelled at her generosity in holding funds drives for seniors and asked, "Why you? Is it a coincidence?"

"The large amounts I send my seniors is first, not from my salary. I grow oranges and mangoes in Makueni (County) from which I make between Sh50,000 and Sh80,000 per month," she responded.

"We also have 'merry-go-round' groups (informal co-operatives) in the police force where members contribute money to help one another. I am a senior at my base and put together with my goodwill, I was tasked to collect members' contributions."

SMALL HARAMBEE

Ms Mutheu went on to show how the 'merry-go-round' had helped a senior.

"There was a time when the traffic commandant in Western asked me to give him petrol to fuel his vehicle to Nairobi. I went to junior officers and organised a small harambee that got him something small for his fuel," she said.

Paul Kerich, a senior police officer and an NPSC panellist representing the Inspector General, asked where she got all the time to engage in the numerous money transfers.

"Marshalling juniors to contribute for seniors is sometimes done by phone and M-pesa, which doesn't take long," she responded.

Johnstone Kavuludi, the NPSC chairman, advised, "Don't bully junior officers to give so that you can pass it on to your bosses. It is dehumanising for officers who earn little. The practice doesn't promote ethical values."