Rein in on rogue city council askaris

A friend once said he prefers being accosted by thugs to having a tiff with Nairobi City County inspectorate officers, commonly referred to as Kanjos or council askaris. He made sense.

The inspectorate officers are supposed to enforce the law but have turned into terrible brutes. In Nairobi, hawkers tell sad tales of how they have been attacked by council askaris.

While law enforcement should not compromise standards, it beats logic that the askaris have resorted to endless street rat and cat chase battles which often leads to death and destruction. I would expect that to deal with mama mbogas (vegetable traders), hawkers and motorcycle riders who may have no respect for county bi-laws, the inspectorate departments should have devised ways of ensuring that part of their duties is not to run after trader’s year in year out. My question is, can we learn from other countries to avoid these clashes?

Corruption has drilled a huge crater in the moral hill of this nation and the askaris are no exception. I once listened a mother narrating how her daughter had been nabbed for resting her foot on a flower bed boulder. While it was logical to either reprimand the poor child or better still act professionally and charge the girl, the rogue officers detained the girl until their wish was granted.

With devolution, askaris are supposed to ensure counties are safe. The city inspectorate departments must put in place measures to ensure that order and civility is maintained in the counties.