Trust in IPOA and ODPP low, opposition leaders say

Former DP Rigathi Gachagua, Wiper Party Leader Kalonzo Musyoka, Fred Matiang'i, Martha Karua, Eugene Wamalwa, Mukhisa Kituyi, Justin Muturi, and Mithika Linturi during a meeting in Nairobi on April 29, 2025. [Courtesy]

Opposition leaders now claim that Kenyans have lost trust in the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) over delays in investigating and prosecuting extrajudicial killings.

In a statement, the seven-member team called for the creation of an independent commission to hold rogue officers accountable, accusing IPOA of neglecting its constitutional duties and operating at the mercy of the current regime.

"Independent institutions tasked with holding our security agencies, particularly the IPOA and the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP), have abdicated their constitutional mandates and now operate at the behest of the regime, actively participating in cover-ups of human rights violations and gross violations of the constitution."

"Kenyans have lost complete trust in the accountability mechanisms and therefore call for an investigative commission that includes state and non-state actors to hold the rogue officers accountable," read the statement.

Their remarks come in the wake of public outrage after IPOA released findings from its probe into extrajudicial killings during the 2024 Finance Bill protests.

According to Kenyans, it is suspicious that the report came only after the release of BBC documentary Blood Parliament.

Critics questioned how the BBC, through open-source intelligence and forensic analysis, identified alleged Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) officers while IPOA's investigations remain incomplete nearly a year later.

According to the opposition, "What we are witnessing today is the rise of a gangster regime that has no regard for human life, no respect for the rule of law, and no commitment to the Constitution. The public has lost complete faith, and the chants #RutoMustGo indicate that he is on his way to be the first one-term president in the history of Kenya."

The leaders also condemned the killing of five people in Kilgoris over a land dispute, calling it part of a growing pattern of state-enabled violence, land grabbing, and forced displacement under the Kenya Kwanza administration.

Led by Kalonzo Musyoka and Rigathi Gachagua, the team accused the regime of blatant violations of land rights.

"Since the Kenya Kwanza Kleptocracy assumed office in 2022, Kenyans have witnessed blatant and systematic efforts by President Ruto and his cronies to illegally and forcefully grab private and community land, grossly undermining the land rights underpinned in Articles 60, 63, and 64 of the Constitution of Kenya."

"What happened in Kilgoris is a replica of the Mavoko, Nairobi, and Ndabibi land disputes and forceful mass displacements," they added.

According to the group, they are committed to escalating the cases to the International Criminal Court (ICC), terming the incidents crimes against humanity.

The seven also urged the National Police Service and all national security agencies to remember that their loyalty lies with the people of Kenya, not to a political regime.