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Murkomen to Kenyans: Police are not animals from hell, respect them

“Have good relations with them, knowing that police are also our children."

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by EMMANUEL WANJALA

News10 July 2025 - 18:30
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In Summary


  • Murkomen warned that continued tension between the public and police risks pushing the country into lawlessness.
  • The CS’s comments come in the wake of deadly protests on June 25 and July 7, during which several young people were reportedly killed, allegedly by police.
Interior CS Kipchumba Murkomen, accompanied by senior county security officers, arrives at Odha for the official opening of Tarasaa subcounty offices in Garsen constituency, Tana River county, July 10, 2025.



Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen has issued a stern appeal to Kenyans to uphold peace and shun hostility toward police officers, amid heightened national outrage following recent cases of alleged police brutality during anti-government protests.

Speaking during the official opening of Tarasaa sub-county offices in Garsen constituency, Tana River county, Murkomen urged citizens to coexist harmoniously with law enforcement officers, warning that continued tension between the public and police risks pushing the country into lawlessness.

“I ask you, citizens, to live peacefully with our police officers across the country,” Murkomen said.

“Have good relations with them, knowing that police are also our children — they are not animals from hell. We should also be respectful towards our police.”

The CS’s comments come in the wake of deadly protests on June 25 and July 7, during which several young people were reportedly killed.

The demonstrations, largely driven by discontent among the youth, have sparked widespread condemnation of state violence. But Murkomen pushed back, drawing a sharp line between peaceful demonstrations and what he described as organised criminal attacks.

“I was recently disturbed to see some people attacking our officers in the guise of protesting,” he said.

“In Dagoretti, their household goods were set ablaze, they torched a police station, and stole five guns. We have found two of the guns; we are still looking for the other three. One was used in a robbery incident in Naivasha.”

He further claimed that mobs acting under the cover of protests also torched a court in Kikuyu, the deputy sub-county commissioner’s office, a registration office and a police station.

According to the CS, a major tragedy was narrowly averted.

“Had that armoury not been strong, they would have made away with explosives. Had they used those explosives on citizens, many people would have died. It’s not a joke what we saw,” he warned.

Drawing on his experience from previous waves of unrest, Murkomen said the scale and violence of the recent demonstrations were unprecedented.

He claimed the events were not spontaneous but the result of a wider political conspiracy.

“I have witnessed protests since my university days, but never had I seen anything like what was witnessed over the past two weeks,” he said.

“That was not a protest — that was an attempted coup, an act of terrorism. A failed attempt to change regime, and we are not going to accept unconstitutional means of changing government.”

Without naming specific individuals, Murkomen accused certain political leaders of organising and funding the chaos, adding that excuses offered by some quarters were unacceptable.

“Yet some people are giving excuses — that is not acceptable. We cannot have our police being chased by civilians like dogs in a country with a constitutional order.”

He warned those behind the violence that the government would not relent in its efforts to restore order and bring offenders to justice.

“I have bad news for them. It is not going to be business as usual,” he said.

“All the criminals that were involved, we shall take firm decisions under the law and ensure that they are presented before the court. In collaboration with the Judiciary, we shall finish this hostility. If we don’t do that, our country will be ruled by criminals.”

Murkomen also dismissed claims that the Gen Z movement was responsible for the destruction, insisting the real culprits were orchestrated by “lords of violence” hoping to destabilise the government.

“No one should tell us it was Gen Z who did all that,” he said.

“We know those who caused destruction were organised by lords of violence and people who are opponents of democracy in the hope that they can change the government or blackmail the government to give in to criminals.”

He urged the Judiciary to play its part in delivering firm justice, particularly in cases of arson, terrorism, and incitement.

“I have confidence that the Judiciary is going to help us sort out this problem once and for all. I urge courts to take a firm stand against arson, terrorism and all acts of violence.” In a pointed conclusion, the CS warned those attempting to shield criminals through ethnic mobilisation.

“Those playing the ethnicity card to protect criminals from certain communities are in for a rude shock,” he declared.

Murkomen’s remarks signal the government’s hardening stance in response to the recent unrest, even as critics demand accountability over the use of force by security agencies.

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