DP Ruto's pilot was right in pushing police officer

To start with, “you are entitled to your own opinion but not your own facts.” On Tuesday while on my way to town, I overheard a heated debate that soon took a political turn suggesting that DP William Ruto’s pilot assaulted a female police officer in Nyandarua. 

In a matter of minutes, the topic was trending on Social Media Networks and it rolled thick, furious and fast. The Deputy President William Ruto through his spokesman David Mugonyi said he was made aware Tuesday morning of an incident of an altercation between a pilot hired to take him to Ndunyu Njeru, Nyandarua County on Sunday and a police officer.

“The Deputy President has asked the police to take immediate action. The Deputy President respects our hardworking police officers who put in a lot of hours to secure our environment and country.” Read part of the statement sent to newsrooms. The DP said the incident is unacceptable, regrettable and the police have been asked to investigate the unbecoming behaviour of the pilot.

I was not surprised with Ruto’s political statements over an issue that was just folding. While in the office, I got a chance to watch and reanalyse the video using my own perspective, and am not trying to absolve the pilot from any charge. When I asked three of my colleagues about their views on the incident, they all said that the pilot should be fired, charged and punished for his actions.  It’s no doubt that the pilot reacted necessarily irrational in the public eyes when he pushed the police officer. However, when striding back the events that unfolded at Ndunyu Njeru field, it’s important for us to distinctively place everything into perspective.  

There are universal safety measures for landing any chopper, and these procedures also take into account the behaviour and responsibility of security officers manning the helicopter on the ground and in air.

Aviation personnel, passengers and members of the public have previously been injured, some fatally, in helicopter mishaps which would not have occurred had everyone played their roles in observing safety measures. Some accidents involve people who, unaware of the danger, walk toward the aircraft's tail rotor after deplaning. In the Nyandarua video, this is the exact thing that took place on Sunday. Some accidents result from people positioned in front of the aircraft inadvertently hitting the aircraft controls. In other cases, pilots leave the aircraft controls while the engines and rotors are turning in order to assist passengers or coordinate the aircraft.

“The Nyandarua pilot video” was taken when the pilot was manning the chopper just minutes after landing. The Deputy President and other dignitaries had just left the chopper for their meeting, but a huge crowd was still gathering around the aircraft – taking photos and enjoying the mood. At some point, the video shows the crowd running to catch the helicopter, while the pilot tries to restrain them. The video showed the female police officer who was supposed to help him man the chopper taking photos and did nothing to stop the crowd. The visibly frustrated pilot then turned to the police officer and furiously asked her why she was not helping him stop the crowd from going to the chopper. In disregard to her responsibilities, the female police officer did nothing and for the second time continued to take photos. The pilot then lost his cool and pushed her away from the chopper. In all fairness, who wouldn’t have lost his or her cool in such a situation?

Turning to specific responsibilities, it should be understood that any space that is occupied by any form of an aircraft is given requisite security provisions that must be offered by designated police officers. There is no airport or aircraft space that can stay for a minute without the presence of a security officer. By any standard of argument, the female police officer ignored her duties even after being reminded to take action so as to stop the crowd that was a potential threat of security to themselves, pilot and the aircraft.

There are some facts in this story that we cannot just ignore for the sake of staying relevant to the masses’ views. Apparently, the Inspector General of police Joseph Boinnet has ordered for immediate arrest and prosecution of the pilot, probably, for “pushing” the police officer who failed in her duty to keep law and order and protect property – which is the core responsibility of any police officer in Kenya.

As to whether the pilot assaulted the police officer when he pushed her away from the chopper that can only be interpreted in a jurisprudential system. It’s however clear that the pilot pushed the lady whose omission and commissions were arguably a threat to her own life as well as the lives of the crowd that was gathering to touch the helicopter.

DP William Ruto should have been the first to defend his pilot if he understood safety measures that go with the protection of a VIP aircraft. There are international standards that have been put in place to ensure that a VIP chopper is safe for use. One of the standards is to ensure that there are security personnel on the ground before and after landing of a chopper. Air-traveling of VIPs, SPG Protected persons and other important persons of eminence in public life is performed these days frequently for electioneering and other movement purposes in helicopter and small aircraft of private operators or non-scheduled operators.

For ensuring adequate safety, such operators should ensure that whenever their aircrafts are hired for such purposes, it should be airworthy and meet all mandatory requirements before flying their crews, and are certified for carrying out such flights. Though a number of guidelines and circulars have been issued in the past for ensuring safety in air operations by small aircraft and helicopters, following guidelines are reiterated so that the same are followed meticulously for ensuring safe operation of helicopters. This is normally a tight coordination among pilots, air control stations and the security personnel on the ground. It should therefore be understood that DP Ruto’s pilot was simply performing his duties. In fact, a pilot is allowed to use necessary force when ensuring that his passengers and aircraft are safe. In other words, the pilot was right when he pushed away the female police officer who was a very good example of security threat to a chopper, passengers and the Nyandarua crowd. 

The security personnel should keep the crowd at least 30 meters from the chopper. Unfortunately in Nyandarua, the female police officer was with the crowd taking cell phone photos. This means that the female police officer also placed Deputy President William Ruto’s life at risk by not taking responsibility to stop the crowd from the aircraft. Just early this year, a Mombasa based traffic police officer was fired after putting President Uhuru Kenyatta’s life at risk when he allowed private car on a presidential route. 

It’s therefore appropriate to recommend charges against the female police officer for failing in her duty to maintain law and order and keep a property safe. She should also be prosecuted for leading the Nyandarua crowd to endanger their lives around the chopper. Were it not for the pilot’s furious actions, a big disaster could have occurred in Nyandarua.