Editorial: Probe claims of police excesses in swoops

Kenya: Residents of Eastleigh have raised complaints of harassment and intimidation against the police and linked the force with actions that undermine government efforts to fight rampant crime and terrorism.

Once a bustling business district, Eastleigh has been reduced to a shell of itself following a concerted security operation by the government to flush out suspected Al shabaab insurgents and aliens who entered the country illegally. It should not be lost on us that the operation was classified as ethnic stereotyping by some Muslim leaders who threatened to break ranks with the government.

There is every indication it is succeeding in weeding out the undesirables, but there is no reason why those with genuine papers should not be left alone to carry out their businesses. While the aliens were deported and others returned to refugee camps where they had escaped from, a few are still in custody.

Emerging cases where policemen walk into people’s houses to intimidate, harass and extort money from them are giving the government and the police service a bad name. Claims that those unable to part with money are taken to Kasarani stadium for interrogation should be investigated. But the fear the policed have instilled in people is such that nobody will have the courage to make a formal complaint to the same police against whom the accusations are made.

The National Police Service Commission should take these claims seriously and if possible, commence an inquiry to establish their authenticity. It is the only way to reassure Eastleigh residents and indeed, the rest of Kenyans that the country has sound systems in place to check excesses by any arms of the government.    

This will not only restore confidence in our police force, but will also act as deterrent to any future malpractices committed in the name of fighting crime.