Ledama Blasts Cop In Viral Video Telling Kenyans To Kill Criminals

Narok Senator Ledama Olekina on Thursday, November 10 criticised a senior police officer based in Nakuru captured in a video gone viral online advising Kenyans to take the law into their own hands in the event a crime occurs in their area.

Inspector Kimutai, who is the Officer Commanding Station (OCS) Bondeni police station, was captured in the video seen by Viral Tea informing a gathering in a public engagement forum that the law allows Kenyans to kill criminals.

He interpreted Article 24 of the Constitution which he explained that the right to life can be limited, thus criminals cannot enjoy the absolute right to life.

"If the person is not peaceful, you discipline that person as you wait for the police. If a person kills someone in what we call hot pursuit and the incident is still fresh, that person should be killed, and I say he should be killed that is the proper interpretation of the law Article 24 of the constitution says certain rights can be limited, these are right which that can be limited and right to life is one right which can be limited," he said as the gathering cheered. 

Here is the video:

OCS Bondeni advises Kenyans to take the law into their own hands in the event of a crime happening in their area ???????? pic.twitter.com/TUFszL0QOX — Marvin Chege (@marvin_chege10) November 11, 2022

He further noted that "If three per cent of the population is involved in the killing, we eliminate that three per cent by killing them to save the 97 per cent."

Senator Olekina was among a section of Kenyans who challenged the officer's interpretation of the law, red-flagging his piece of advice.

"OCS Bondeni interpreting the constitution article 24 - on limitation of rights and fundamental freedoms worries me a lot about our criminal justice system! It is absurd for a law enforcement officer to tell Kenyans that they have a right to kill other Kenyans," he wrote.

He further expressed worry about the Kenyan Judiciary and criminal justice system while clarifying the true meaning of Article 24 of the Constitution.

"The Judiciary interprets the law, not the person who is supposed to implement it! This is the fundamental reason why we have a separation of powers.

"Article 24 does not limit the right to life. No, it does not! We must allow the due process of the law to take its cause," he added.

The Article explains that "A right or fundamental freedom in the Bill of Rights shall not be limited except by law, and then only to the extent that the limitation is reasonable and justifiable in an open and democratic society based on human dignity, equality and freedom, taking into account all relevant factors," including--

1. the nature of the right or fundamental freedom;
2. the importance of the purpose of the limitation;
3. the nature and extent of the limitation;
4. the need to ensure that the enjoyment of rights and fundamental freedoms by any individual does not prejudice the rights and fundamental freedoms of others; and
5. the relation between the limitation and its purpose and whether there are less restrictive means to achieve the purpose.

According to the National Police Service (NPS) report on Thursday, October 13, Nakuru and Machakos counties were ranked fourth and fifth with 4,281 cases and 3,275 cases, respectively. 

Nairobi was number one with 6,686 cases, with 1,129 being assault cases. Kiambu was second with 5,715 cases, and Meru County was third with 5,032 incidents.