Police in Central Kenya live in deplorable conditions

Police houses. These are houses occupied by administration police officers in Kangema and which they claim expose them to cold and hot temperatures. Police officers in Central Kenya are living in deplorable conditions as they continue to protect and serve Kenyans. (PHOTO: BONIFACE GIKANDI/ STANDARD)

Police officers in Central Kenya are living in deplorable conditions as they continue to protect and serve Kenyans.

The state of police houses in Nyeri County, for example, is a crying shame, with officers struggling to offer their services.

In Muthuthini, Mukurwe-Ini Constituency, the situation is a source of disappointment for the officers at the facility.

POLICE POST

Locals had called for a police post to be located close to a hospital after several break-ins at the health facility.

After a small fund-raiser, the station was built with simple planks of wood but after officers were posted there, no support to improve the structures has been forthcoming.

One of the officers said the wooden structures were destroyed by termites several years ago and the officers have used iron sheets to put up a roof over their heads.

"When it rains, the bedding are soaked, we all live together; young and old," he noted.

Unfortunately, none of them have brought their families to the post because of the living conditions.

"How can I bring my wife who has two small children here? There is no privacy, and there is no space, with the walls falling apart and the wind making us fall sick," he explained.

Some officers still live in wooden houses with leaking roofs that are partitioned by curtains and the walls are rotting.

During the cold season, the officers stuff the cracks between the wooden planks with newspapers to keep the chilling winds at bay.

At Karatina Police Station, an officer said when it rains, he wakes up to find utensils floating around his one-roomed iron-sheet house.

The officer said it was even better to spend the night out patrolling the streets than to go to the room he calls home.

"I usually try to avoid sleeping here because it is so uncomfortable, it is more of a store for my personal belongings," he said.

At Marua Police Station, officers also live in wooden structures that have no basic amenities.

"Water is a problem as well as electricity, but we have no option but to brave the elements," one officer complained.

In Murang'a, police officers have been neglected despite State's assurance that they will have decent accommodation.

 WORST HIT

Those working in remote areas are the worst hit as they live in deplorable conditions, while some live with their families.

At the Kangema AP camp, security officers living in galvanised-iron-sheet houses said they were exposed to harsh conditions.

An officer who spoke on condition of anonymity recounted how he suffered when he transferred to the station as a result of the new conditions of living.

He said during the day, the house is too hot while in the evening, temperatures are too low and risky for those suffering from pneumonia.