Kenya’s media is very active; indeed progressive, savvy, and woke too. Every news item makes a great media story, if not a scoop worth reading. You can’t just be bored - politically speaking - when you imbibe on Kenyan headlines.
My pet area revolves around democracy, governance, and alleged police excesses - so-to-speak.
Every day, or now and then, we are treated to media comparisons on how Kenya is “denigrating” democratically. And of recent, on how exercising our Article 37 still showcases tough policing tactics.
And then we readily draw comparisons, both globally and regionally, on how badly we are sliding down south.
But we forget about the hard facts. Truth or facts, anyways, is, and remains stubborn!
Just a day or two prior to the demos, one of our opposition politicians made her way to a neighbouring country, not to tour, or just any other meeting, but in pursuit of a human rights obligation in support of a top political figure in that country facing criminal charges.
Outcome? No entry. In fact, a possible ejection, if not outright deportation was a possibility. She was treated as a persona-non-grata for pursuing the very basics of rights enjoyed here: right to representation.
A day or two later, the very politician, back home - Kenya, was seen happily, and gleeful on television in company of compatriots, and under friendly police escort, to fulfill yet another local human rights obligation under our constitution. This was in exercise of Article 37.
No ejection. No police harassment. Even wreaths were laid. The very leader even congratulated the police publicly for not only providing her with security, but having allowed her pass through a road barrier the very morning on her way to take place in a public demonstration.
Such only happens in not only functional democracies, but in beacons of one.
And that’s what Kenya is, fortunately.
Then a day or two later, I went through the print media. All the headlines screamed: ‘Gen Z, Roadblocks, Arrests and Tears’ - (Weekend Star), ‘Total Lockdown’ - (The Standard - Friday), ‘Brutal Police’ - (The Saturday Standard), Lockdown’ - (Daily Nation - Friday).
I was confounded! I wasn’t sure if what I had seen on TV the previous day was a reflection of what the very media was later reporting in print! And if it also compared - remotely - to our regional geopolitics, or even beyond?
No mainstream coverage was even given to the CS for Interior’s presser the same evening, accounting for the day’s events. Also various positive TV coverage on positive police response were ignored. Even assertions by opposition political leaders who were happy with police performance were berthed clear.
This simply fell short of objective reporting. In academia, it was polemic, a cardinal sin in critical writing!
I have had the privilege of serving at the UN headquarters within itspolice docket as a policy expert supporting fragile countries. And in all failure stories, or those emerging from conflict or even still under fragility, the bare minimum was and remains the role of effective police institutions and policing function as a whole, and its targeted contribution towards effective governance for a healthy and prosperous nation.
On this, there is no compromise.
Many lessons were drawn and learned from my then work experience. But chiefly, that police agencies aren’t perfect. And won’t either be, or pretend to be altogether. Why? Because police are collectively a direct image, or a mirror of general society, which unfortunately, remains imperfect, too. “Garbage in; garbage out” is the fitting mantra.
Secondly, weak and undermined police governance leads to lawlessness and eventual anarchy. This leads to either fragility or outright conflict situations. But strong policing holds the centre of governance tight, hence peace and prosperity.
Police are modelled, just like other institutions. And by and large, by the people and societies that they police, not just the governments, conventions, laws or rules. The latter are all important, but form just part of the equation. You don’t simply hate the police - bearing in mind the complexity of their role - and then expect them to play Angel Michael. Something must give!
And you also don’t simply exercise a fundamental right to demonstrate under Article 37 at the expense of others, and expect police to be clueless, or even cheerleaders or bystanders. They too got a constitutional obligation to fulfill for their paycheck.
Indeed, what the police do as intervenors in conflict situations is exactly what every citizen ought to do: defend themselves, and others lives and properties collectively within their communes.
But since not everyone can dedicate their resourceful time to this tasking due to pressures and realities of life, they therefore willingly donate the responsibility with commensurate resources to a select few - police - as their agents of peace and order on their behalf.
This is basic science of police studies. It’s where police derive their powers to not only keep the peace, but utilise coercive power, including utility of violence.
Police must be designed, build and supported too by all to be strong and effective.
We all live for live. And we all live to own property. Threaten these two cardinal objectives, and you challenge the very fabric of mankind: right to live and right to own property.
Meaning, no further motivation will be there to live for; no inspiration and aspiration towards property ownership.
Some countries know this - just too well - and take it a notch higher to defend and safeguard their statehood from decay caused by impunity and ignorance. That’s why you won’t be given ingress into such countries, once profiled as a rabble rouser - whatever their definition of such - or even when perceived a threat to their national security. Every state has its own past security history and experiences, after all, and consciously design befitting measures for its preservation into the future.
This is well reinforced by a Kenyan on social media who recently vowed never to travel abroad again. Reason? Due to a bad experience he encountered when he travelled abroad.
Upon entry, he was picked from the line, isolated, manhandled, and humiliated. Why? Just for the simple reason that his passport had visa entries to other countries ‘perceived’ as “unfriendly” to the one being visited.
These are some of the tough law enforcement security measures - uncomfortable as they may appear - but understandable nonetheless for being of national security necessity to individual countries and based on their security realities and corresponding countermeasures.
They form part of universal policing doctrine. And the overriding factor here is intelligence on hand to guide law enforcement interventions and tactics applied.
This therefore speaks of one thing: that security is key, paramount, and a baseline feature on how a state either succeeds or fails. It’s the very cornerstone of statehood.
It thus calls for a public reflection on our Kenyan security regime with sobriety and patriotism for a fuller appreciation of our security needs and measures. Ours, comparatively is the best regionally, and measures well globally, if not hopeful, and progressive in the future.
The writer is the director-general of Kenya Coast Guard Services and former coordinator - Serious and Organised Crime Team, UN Police headquarters
