Matiang'i defends police presence at 'criminal activity-laden' City Hall

Matiang'i defends police presence at City Hall full of 'criminal activities'

In Summary

• Matiang'i on Wednesday said he is consulting widely with the National Security Council over the matter and said something has to be done.

•“Let us not bury our heads in the sand. We know what the right thing is and we know how best to act. Nairobi County has become an area of special interest and it's high time to engage the police,” he said.

Interior CS Fred Matiang'i and Former IG Joseph Boinnet at KICD on July 29, 2020.
Interior CS Fred Matiang'i and Former IG Joseph Boinnet at KICD on July 29, 2020.
Image: ENOS TECHE

Interior CS Fred Matiang'i has waded into the wrangles that have become synonymous with City Hall, saying Nairobi county has become an area of 'special interest' with the need for police presence.

This follows the chaos that was witnessed at City Hall on Tuesday as two camps fought to mark their territory.

MCAs allied to Speaker Beatrice Elachi have vowed to impeach Governor Mike Sonko, while the other camp has vowed to impeach her.

 

The chaos culminated in a Mlango Kubwa MCA Patricia Mutheu being clobbered by police who went to City Hall to quell tension.

The act has been widely condemned, with Ipoa launching investigations.

Women leaders, including nominated Senator Millicent Omanga and Gender CAS Rachel Shebesh accompanied Muthue to record a statement at Central police station.

Omanga condemned the act of brutality, adding police should not be used to quell tension in the assembly.

She said that does not happen even in Parliament.

Matiang'i on Wednesday said he is consulting widely with the National Security Council over the matter and said something has to be done.

“Let us not bury our heads in the sand. We know what the right thing is and we know how best to act. Nairobi County has become an area of special interest and it's high time to engage the police,” he said.

Speaking during the launch of the National Police Service Book by former IG Joseph Boinnet, Matiang'i said placing police at Nairobi County Assembly has  become necessary.

“35 percent of the CBD security deployment is always around Nairobi County assembly. This is because most of the activities happening around the area is pure criminality. We cannot go on this way and there are decisions that have to be made on policing the County assembly of Nairobi among other counties following chaos being witnessed,"he explained.

He added that Nairobi County is no longer an assembly but a 'war zone' where members are fighting each other every time.

 
 

“I have asked the Inspector General of Police with the regional security team to disarm everyone around that county who holds firearms. So far they have managed to collect 14 guns but I suspect with the level of criminality around that area there could be more guns yet to be collected,” Matiang'i said.

He however condemned the way police officers handled Mutheu and called upon the police to exercise the rule of law with limitation.

The National Police Service book that was launched at the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development recaps milestone taken by the National Police Service towards ensuring betterment of the police service.

“A great deal has happened, milestones have been achieved. Some mistakes have been made and lessons learned along the way. Victories have also been achieved. It would be impossible to achieve everything," Tourism CAS Joseph Boinnet said as he cited an excerpt from the book

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