IG Kanja's presence at Ruto's rally sparks controversy over police independence

Police Deputy IG Douglas Kanja before the National Assembly's Constitutional Implementation Oversight Committee (CIOC) at the Continental House, Parliament Nairobi. (File, Standard) Barely a day after fronting himself as a champion of the independence of State security agents, President William Ruto paraded Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja at one of his rallies in his ongoing tour of the Mount Kenya region. In a livestream on Dr Ruto's official Facebook page, as well as the State House Kenya's official YouTube channel that The Standard saw, Kanja, in official regalia, is seen addressing a crowd in Kieni, Nyeri County on Tuesday, a new low for the National Police Service, which ought to be apolitical and independent from the Executive. "Are you happy to see our President here? Are you grateful? Do you want him to come back again? We are still doing our work," said Kanja, who spoke in in mother tongue, Kikuyu. Police spokesperson Muchiri Nyaga denied that Kanja would address a political gathering. He said an image of Kanja on stage alongside Deputy President Kithure Kindiki was Artificial Intelligence "AI generated." "The IG does not attend or address political rallies. This is a hoax," Nyaga said in a phone call interview, adding that Kanja was conducting a "tour of police stations." The Standard challenged him on the video clip that shows Kanja address the Kieni rally, which has since circulated online. "No way. That is absolutely crap," Nyaga said about the video, which, as late as last evening, was still published on Ruto's official Facebook page and the State House's YouTube channel. Kanja's move to address a political gathering raises questions about his independence and the service he leads. During a televised interview on Monday, Ruto hailed his administration for keeping the National Police Service independent by granting it financial autonomy and the space to decide its operations freely. "When I took over the presidency, I told the police that I would not issue orders. That is why I removed the police's budget from the president's office and told Mr Kanja, 'IG and your people, there goes your budget.' (On) operational independence, I told them I would not be involved in their investigations of any person because that is their mandate as an independent arm of the security. We have done that so that when challenges emerge, there would not be excuses about interference by the president," said Ruto. Kanja's presence in the tour is a mockery of the Head of State's assertions that he is not interfering with the independence of security agencies. It is arguably the first time the head of the police has stepped on the political podium and assumed such prominence. Ordinarily, they issue public addresses in official settings. The development comes amid a storm over remarks by the Chief of Defence Forces, General Charles Kahariri and National Intelligence Service Director-General Noordin Haji that were deemed political. They spoke during a public lecture last week, with Kahariri faulting the Ruto-Must-Go chants that have refused to die down, warning that such agitation must be accordance to the Constitution. On his part, Haji urged against divisive politics. The public outrage was mostly because several Kenyans felt that the two officials were wading into politics when they were mandated to be neutral and apolitical. Deputy President Kithure Kindiki had ushered Kanja on stage during the Tuesday rally in the same manner he had invited politicians and granted the latter the chance to speak, denied to most politicians. The invitation was, ostensibly, meant as a display of the significance Mt Kenya holds in Kenya's structure, going by the number of people appointed from the region. "Kuna watu wamepewa kazi na rais hapa wametoka Nyeri (Here with us are people from Nyeri who were given jobs by the President)," Kindiki had said. Indeed, Kindiki had paraded other officials, such as former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua's sister-in-law Margaret Karungaru, a commissioner at the National Gender and Equality Commission and the commission's Chief Executive Officer Purity Ngina. "Others are not here. Nyeri is a land of generals. I hear that after General (Julius) Karangi left - General (Charles) Kahariri is now around," said Kindiki. The independence of Kenya's security agencies has always been under scrutiny. Successive regimes have often used them to settle political scores and fight their wars. To address such concerns, the police were set as an independent body in Kenya's Constitution that took effect in 2010. However, that has done little to tame the Executive's interference. Former President Uhuru Kenyatta faced accusations of weaponising the police service to tame political dissent. As deputy president, Ruto perennially lamented that the former administration used investigative agencies to harass his allies, fabricating corruption cases and related matters. Ruto's most consistent criticism of Uhuru related to a police unit that allegedly abducted and killed Kenyans with the government's blessings. The Head of State has said he disbanded the unit. Ruto, too, has not been immune to such criticism. His administration has been accused of being behind the abduction and killing of government critics and using the police to curtail constitutional freedoms, such as the right to hold protests. Indeed, the police consistently thwarted opposition efforts to stage protests in 2023. It did not matter that organisers notified the authorities of their plans. Last year, masked officers in unmarked vehicles frustrated youth-led protests over tax hikes.

IG Kanja's presence at Ruto's rally sparks controversy over police independence

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