NAIROBI: Mention a police officer to most Kenyans and what comes to mind is harassment and bribe taking.
It is a stereotyping that Corporal Sammy Ondimu is only too aware of and an image he has worked hard to shake off.
“Society needs to appreciate what police officers are doing in their individual capacity. There are many who go beyond the call of duty to create an impact in society. These are men and women who deserve recognition and not blanket condemnation as is the case,” he says.
Corporal Sammy is among those who are using their position in authority to help the needy and vulnerable in society.
“Many people do not think about the plight of street families and young girls who are sexually abused. These two groups are a condemned lot who are often pushed to early crime by the circumstances they encounter,” he says.
It is to stem this tide that the Corporal, in 2012, established Maxifactor Girls Centre in Soweto slum, Kayole.
He says the home was set up to offer a sanctuary to such girls who are left dejected, and often rejected.
Sammy says the idea to set up the home began to take shape in his mind as he heard more and more heart breaking stories from girls who, often from broken homes, would fall prey to opportunists.
“There is a girl who told me she had to depend on a boy for sanitary towel provision. Although at first the boy gave her these towels for free, he one day asked her for a favour and with nothing to give, she offered him her body.
She got pregnant and was left to endure ridicule from a heartless society. Her story made me realise that something as simple as a sanitary towel can change a girl’s life,” he says.
Despite having his own family of three to feed, the policeman convinced his wife that these girls needed their support and with her blessing begun using his salary to help. Today, the home has benefited hundreds of girls and Sammy says he would not have been able to achieve this without his own family’s support.
But why would someone make such a sacrifice?
For Sammy, it has everything to do with his own childhood and a promise he made to touch another person’s life.
“I grew up in a family where the next meal was not guaranteed. I remember being sent home for school fees and spending weeks before my parents could raise it.
Surrounded by such poverty, I would pray and ask God to make it possible for me to become a police officer. I felt this was the only way I could make a difference in the lives of those enduring poverty as I was,” he says.
So, when he got opportunity to join the administration police unit in 2002, Sammy knew it was an answer to prayer and that he had his end of the bargain to uphold.
Not only does the Maxifactor Girls Centre provide a refuge to vulnerable girls, it also ensures they acquire skills training to enable them set up small businesses.
The Corporal has taken a new direction and through contributions from friends is now in the process of purchasing car-wash machines for street boys in Umoja Innercore estate, Nairobi.
“As I took food to them last Christmas, they requested that I buy them two machines. I got in touch with the area MP and he promised to make this a reality. I know once these boys have access to this equipment, crime will no longer be an option,” he says.
As Sammy does this duty for society, he is not only living his dream but also working to change society’s perception of the police force.
He is also a gospel singer and his first song, ‘Askari ni mwanadamu’ (police are human) seeks to drive this message home.
“We are human beings and many of us are working to foster better perceptions since this is the only way we can get society to help us contain crime and radicalisation,” he says.
Sammy says his work has received support from his superiors who grant him permission when he needs it and promptly acts on his requests. He has also gone on to receive recognition from his peers.
Last year, he was awarded the Best Individual Police Officer and Extra Mile Awards by the Independent Police Oversight Authority.
Although he appreciates the awards, which come from citizen votes, the 36-year-old has his sights set on greater projects in 2016.
“I want to become an anti-female genital mutilation ambassador in my county of Kisii. This is a practise that is affecting our young girls and needs to stop,” he says
