'Police in Lamu rescue mission were obsessed with money'

A police officer stares at one of the shell of the cars burnt by a gang at the Mpeketoni Police Station. [Photo: File]

LAMU COUNTY: Most police officers called in to reinforce security following the Mpeketoni attack were more concerned about allowances, a report has shown.

The Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) report reveals the security operation - established to track down attackers who raided villages in Mpeketoni on June 15 and 16 and killed more than 60 people - was slowed down by the officers themselves.

The report released on Monday stated senior Government officials got concerned as officers were more focused on payment of allowances than the substance of the operation.

"While the operation was ongoing, it appeared most of the officers who came to reinforce it were more engrossed in either being paid allowances or waiting to be paid, while others were preparing paperwork to support the payments," said the report.

The report said it would have been prudent if all efforts by the officers focused on the security operation instead.

It recommended that future payments should be processed after operations have been completed and security situations have normalised.

The report also recommended that rather than make cash payments in the field, allowances should be paid through electronic transfers directly into officers' bank accounts.

The report highlighted the extent of the mess in the security apparatus in Lamu County, noting the county was overwhelmed as it lacked personnel and equipment.

For instance, it noted the Mpeketoni Police Station and Administration Police Division Headquarters in the area were understaffed, indicating the police station had only 17 officers on active duty.

A breakdown of the station's capacity indicated even though the station had a staff strength of 25, only 17 were active, with four stationed at Mkunumbi Police Post.

On a regular shift, according to the report, officers were assigned as follows: two report office/cell sentry, four crime branch, three prisoner escort/mobile court/beat, two Kenya Commercial Bank, two Equity Bank and three night patrol (some of the night patrol officers include officers who worked during the day).

On the night of the attack, there were only two officers at the police station doing report office/cell sentry duty. Three night shift officers had not yet ventured out for night patrols.

WALKIE-TALKIES

IPOA stated the stations' staff capacity was being depleted by posting officers to guard financial institutions at the expense of other operations.

The authority also pointed out officers in the county experienced communications problems, noting the only radio communication system at Mpeketoni Police Station was HF, capable of communicating only with the Lamu control room.

None of the officers in the district have walkie-talkies. They rely on personal mobile phones while the static radio system they own was said to be problematic and, therefore, unreliable.

"They use their personal mobile phones at their own cost. On the night of the attack, they could not use the static radio as they had to evacuate the premises for safety and the radio room was set on fire," stated the report.

"The AP office had one HF radio which was set on fire by the attackers. This was quickly replaced with one from Nairobi. The APs also have one radio at Hongwe Post but Baharini has none. The APs do not have pocket radios or walkie-talkies," it said.

The reports noted had either of the police stations commanders had portable radios, they would have had a better chance to communicate and co-ordinate response and reinforcement.