Kisumu,Kenya: The Witness Protection Agency (WPA) has opened a new office in Kisumu to serve counties within Nyanza and Western regions.
Speaking to the Press, Agency Director Alice Ondieki said establishment of a regional headquarters in Kisumu is aimed at bringing services closer to the people.
She said with the agency’s only offices located in Nairobi and Mombasa, accessibility of their services has been a challenge to most people.
“This agency requests those who have been threatened for cooperating with the prosecution and other law enforcement agencies to contact us on 0800720460,” Ondieki said.
She said WPA will also launch a massive public capacity building in the region to sensitise the public on the country’s witness protection programme.
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The agency, created in 2008, is charged with protecting witnesses who may face security threats, intimidation and social rejection using mechanisms that include physical and armed protection, relocation, change of identity, in-camera hearings, use of pseudo names, redaction of identification, video link and distortion of witness identity.
Its mandate has however been slow in reaching the public and the official said the sensitisation programme is expected to reverse this.
