Unenviable post that is Inspector-General of Police

The office of the Inspector-General of the National Police Service has come into sharp focus at a time Kenya is deeply divided politically.

IG Joseph Boinnet with nearly 100,000 officers under his command, must remain impartial when dealing with pro-government supporters and opposition supporters.

He faces a delicate balancing act of impartially maintaining law and order.

STREET PROTESTS

But he owes his job to the President, following a change in laws that did away with provisions that would have allowed a lengthy and rigorous process in his appointment and dismissal.

Mr David Kimaiyo, the first IG, spoke about the non-partisan nature that defines policing, saying no one is above the law and it should therefore be enforced as such.

“You do not close one eye to a person and open it to another. It is because you are maintaining order. The law must apply to all and sundry. Any crime committed must be dealt with equally,” he said.

Going by the outcome of recent street protests called by opposition coalition Nasa, Mr Boinnet has been a man on the spot.

During the August 8 General Election and repeat presidential election on October 26, he was forced to fend off accusations that his officers killed 46 people.

The police chief whom human rights organisations want action taken against, said only 11 deaths were recorded during the period.

INJURIES

At least six police officers sustained injuries after they were attacked by riotous mobs who were preventing voters from accessing polling stations during the repeat election.

During the demonstrations, some which turned riotous, Mr Boinnet also has to deal with his own officers.

The police boss is required by law to assign police bodyguards to MPs and other VIPs, some who are orchestrators and participants in riots.

In recent events, police guarding VIPs collided with their colleagues deployed in anti-riot gear.

According to Mr Kimaiyo, such situations are precarious.

“Sometimes you have to call officers guarding VIPs and tell them that they should be helping other officers in dealing with rioters,” he said.

Working hours associated with police operations are rather unenviable.
REAL TIME

Being in office by 4am and sometimes leaving after 10pm is not a job for the faint-hearted.

The IGs position is, however, supported by key lieutenants at the headquarters and in the regions who must provide regular briefs real time.

And a time when virtually all government energies have been directed to the political situation, there is a bigger problem bugging the police chief’s thoughts: terrorism in parts of the Coast and northern Kenya.

Most terror attacks there have targeted his officers. In the most recent attack in Mandera on Monday, an officer was injured while two police vehicles were set ablaze by Al-Shabaab fighters who fled to Somalia.

The political situation is also happening at a time thousands of students are sitting for their national examination and all centres require deployment of police, especially in bandit prone areas.