OCS arrest for freeing protesters betrays political hand in the NPS

Nairobi's Central Police Station.[File, Standard]

The midnight home arrest of Police OCS Dishon Angoya during another week of protests, perhaps not wholly surprising, was still unsettling. What does it reveal about how State power is being exercised?

Netizens woke to read a police signal reporting the Chief Inspector had been arrested for allegedly abusing his office by unlawfully releasing 64 protesters detained on Monday, 18 May.

Held at Langata Police Station, he was later moved to the hospital after a spike in his blood pressure. Within hours, the story went viral. Ruffled by the public debate, the Interior Principal Secretary, the Nairobi Regional Police Commander, and the Police Spokesperson issued conflicting statements.

The PS questioned the OCS’s authority to release suspects. The Regional Commander said he was under investigation, and the Spokesperson denied any arrest, insisting internal disciplinary processes would be deployed if necessary. Meanwhile, crowds gathered outside Angoya’s hospital in support, as pro bono human rights lawyers sought clarity on his status and possible charges.

The arrest raises fundamental questions about police independence and the trust the State has in its commanders. Under the National Police Service Act (Cap. 84), OCSs hold full command, administrative, and enforcement authority within their stations.

They are responsible for overseeing crime response, arrests, custody, and court processing. Their role as the police’s public face and a key force in defusing tensions is too often overlooked.

From personal experience, this is where the OCSs I have met have distinguished themselves. Faced with hundreds of thousands of protesters, they have had the professionalism to uphold suspects’ rights to access legal representation, bail, and to face their charges within an open court within 24 hours.

Many understand that clogging courts and remand prisons with peaceful protesters on weak charges serves neither the State, public, nor the law. They know what drives their “clients” to their stations is not criminal but political and economic grievances.

Over the last two years, if we set aside looters and goons, over 2,500 protesters have been arrested for exercising their right to express themselves on government policy. If the DCI and ODPP had chosen to proceed with charges, the Judiciary would have found itself suffocated.

Angoya’s arrest was therefore not normal. Criminalising his discretion to grant a police bond undercuts the rule of law. It betrayed a likely unlawful interference in operational independence, and deepens concerns that policing is becoming politicised and command authority is being abused.

Perhaps he drew the wrath of his superiors and Harambee House, who seemed keen to push an “economic sabotage” narrative. Yet with transport operators lawfully withdrawing services over steep fuel hikes, such charges would likely have collapsed in court.

Wisely, this hardline stance quickly gave way to dialogue, avoiding the absurdity of charging boycott organisers with a capital offence, only for the President to take group photos days later.

The protests sadly did not come with fatalities and injuries. In just 48 hours, 17 Kenyans were killed in Nairobi (4), Naivasha (4), Kiambu (3), Busia (3), Thika (2), and Nakuru (1) during protests. At least 30 people are nursing gunshot injuries in hospitals throughout the country.

That the National Police Service (NPS) and the Interior Ministry still cannot manage protests lawfully and peacefully should alarm us. Singer Rachel Wandeto’s horrific death is another warning. We are drifting toward the second anniversary of the breaching of the National Assembly next month and another volatile election next year without a national strategy.

Released yesterday, Amnesty International Kenya and Odipo Dev's new Kenya Freedom Index demonstrates that most protests over the last five years have been driven by economic grievances, not politics.

Community residents have organised the most protests (360), followed by workers (235), young people (171), students (98), and civil society organisations (63), among others. The crisis is the loss of public confidence and policy failure.

Punishing OCS Angoya or any other senior officer for lawfully exercising his powers changes nothing. By contrast, yesterday’s US visa ban on Tanzania’s most feared Police Officer, Faustin Mwafele, for allegations of abductions and extrajudicial killings despite no court arraignment, is a welcome step.