Police to blame for the beating meted out to them, says lawyer

Lawyer Kipkoech Ngetcih during an interview at his office in Nakuru on June 3, 2024. [Kipsang Joseph, Standard]

Cases of road users confronting traffic police officers continue to be reported raising concern over the persistent bad blood.

On Sunday, a 19-year-old motorist was filmed beating up a traffic police officer in Nairobi.

In the video widely shared in social media the man is seen attacking the policeman with punches and kicks to the head even after the officer falls on the ground. The suspect is seen escaping only to be arrested later.

A police report indicated that the man was initially stopped after he made a U-turn on a busy road, obstructing other motorists. The officer reportedly entered the vehicle and instructed him to drive to the police station.

The man while on the way allegedly drew a sword under  the seat forcing the officer to jump out of the vehicle. The man, however, followed the officer with blows and kicks.

Several other incidents have been reported before.

In December 2020, three traffic police officers were caught on camera assaulting a motorist in Nakuru County.

The officers were manning traffic at Barnabas Trading Centre along the Nairobi-Nakuru highway. The incident occurred on December 23rd at around 5pm.

In November 2018, a tuk-tuk operator was caught on camera fighting two police officers.

In the 42-second video, which went viral, the man was seen hurling stones at unarmed traffic police officers and at some point dragging one on the road.

He then retreats and after a while is seen driving back, then exiting his tuk-tuk to continue his assault on the officers.

The video shows police officers picking stones and hurling them at the tuk-tuk, even as the driver tries to flee the scene.

Lawyer Kipkoech Ng’etich who once sued the Inspector General seeking traffic police to be removed on the roads yesterday said police officers are to blame for the assault meted out to them by road users.

Kipkoech said though the Kenya Police Force changed its name to Kenya Police Service, their culture remained the same.

Kenya Police Service he said is largely a force whose interest is to ensure civilians break the law or take advantage of one's ignorance of the law.

The lawyer said more has to be done to change the culture of the police.

“The police service hasn’t changed its culture, what we still have is still the colonial force that used to torture people. We have about 30 per cent of police officers in this country who are very reasonable, kind, and respect human rights,” he said.

Kipkoech in September 2022 filed a case at the High Court claiming police officers have turned Kenyan roads into tax havens and corruption dens.

He sued the Inspector General of Police over alleged harassment of motorists on Kenyan roads.

He named the Inspector General of Police, the National Police Service, and the Director of Public Prosecutions respondents. He claimed he was wrongly and maliciously detained by the police for imaginary offences.

“This matter is about the unconstitutional and unlawful arrest, detention, and charging of the petitioner (Kipkoech Ng’etich) and other Kenyan road users on unprecedented speed limits,” reads the suit in part.

Kipkoech stated that on December 19, 2020, at about 11.30 am, near Mau Tea area on his way to Kericho from Nakuru, he was flagged down and detained by the police for two minutes for allegedly driving above the speed limit of 50 kilometres per hour established around Kedowa Town.

He was also detained by the police on June 30, 2022, at about 7.30 am at Salgaa along the Nakuru-Kericho highway for driving above the speed of 50 kilometers per hour around Sobea.

He said he filed a complaint dated July 21, 2022, with the police service but is yet to receive a response. Kipkoech, through his lawyer, said he was wrongly and maliciously detained by the police for imaginary offences

Section 42(3) of the Traffic Act, he said, provides that the 50km/hour speed limit signs on the designated spots should be erected to show the starting point and the end.

He said the permitted speed limit for private vehicles is generally 100km/hour on the highways as dispensed from rule 2 of the traffic (speed limits) rules. Further, he said Section 70(5A)(a) and 5(B) of the Traffic Amendment Act No 37 of 2012 opines there is a statutory tolerance speed of 20km/hr for the benefit and enjoyment of drivers.

The police, he said, are in breach of the law for arresting millions of Kenyans and road users for violating non-existent speed limits where they solicit for bribes and those who fail to comply are dragged to court. The police, he noted, fail to turn up to prosecute their claims leaving victims at the mercy of the courts.