Maandamano: 9 Police Station Were Torched, 158 Cars Damaged, PS Raymond Omollo Says

• Interior Principal Secretary Raymond Omollo blamed the recent pockets of violence on civilians partaking in anti-government protests
• Omollo, who did not tabulate the deaths of Kenyans on the streets, said an officer was killed with over 300 others injured by the members of the public
• He also blamed the civilians for torching nine police stations and damaging over 150 police vehicles

Nairobi - Interior Principal Secretary Raymond Omollo has defended the state law enforcers against the accusations that they perpetrated brute force on demonstrators.

He said about 305 police officers were injured, one succumbing to injuries while facing off with "criminals masquerading as protesters".

Omollo said the law enforcement agents had been wrongly painted in a bad light by being alleged to have brutalised the civilians on the streets.

He said the fact that the officers lost their motor vehicles and had their stations torched was being overlooked.

"The new trend of negatively profiling, harassing and attacking security personnel saw 305 law enforcement officers seriously injured and 1 fatality while executing the cardinal responsibility of protecting lives and property. The National Police Service also lost 158 vehicles and 9 police stations, either burnt down or severely damaged by criminals masquerading as protesters," Omollo is quoted as having said.

Kithure Kindiki's perspective

Interior CS Kithure Kindiki had earlier said the claims that police brutalised demonstrators were malicious, false and intended to paint the officers in lousy light.

According to the CS, those accusing the police could be the ones masterminding the violent acts veiled as peaceful protests.

"The architects of this false and distorted narrative bear the greatest responsibility for planning, financing and executing heinous crimes resulting in death and injury of civilians and law enforcement officers and massive destruction of private and public property during the past few weeks," he said.

He said the investigators were probing the recent pockets of violence, and soon, those bankrolling it would be brought to book and "have date with accountability."

"Investigative and Intelligence agencies are analysing solid evidence in their possession, which evidence is adequate to prosecute the key planners, executors and financiers of large-scale arson, violent robberies and destruction of infrastructure, as well as death and injury of civilians and security personnel," he said.

Adding that;

We will proceed to conclude the analysis of the available evidence to bring to account all those involved, notwithstanding their antics of politicization and ethnicization of the grave matter of widespread lawlessness, crime and impunity, in a clear but hopeless ruse aimed at deflecting the inevitable consequence of accountability."

Kindiki stressed that the National Police Service and other national security organs would continue being neutral, impartial and professional and would not be drawn into political, ethnic or other sectarian nuances.