The Psyche of a Kenyan Police Officer PDF Print E-mail
Written by Michael Kwambo   
Thursday, 21 August 2008

The average police officer's job requires that he makes instant street decisions of the wisest and least provocative caliber yet he was not tested for emotional stability before joining the force. He has an ambivalent view of his work and often regrets joining the force.

He feels that he is only a cog in a machine. He believes that much of the public regards him with contempt and hostility. Attitude samplings show too, that he is prejudiced against women, youth and low income earners. He has little appreciation of the psychology and culture of these populations. He is aware that fellow officers often treat citizens with rudeness, abuse and even roughness.

He finds little compensation in his fork. He feels stifled by the police seniority system, believes his superiors desert him under political pressure, thinks society expects an impossible performance from him and feels harassed by the courts for recent decisions that prevent him from gaining convictions. He is disheartened by the increasing difficulty of making a case against criminals he feels certain are guilty.

Each police officer in Kenya protects thousands of people. He faces a constantly rising crime rate. He manages to solve very few of the crimes he encounters. His beat is as unpredictable as a Kenyan politician. He encounters bandits, bank robbers, illicit brewers, hawkers and commercial sex workers, all in a days work. Criminal investigation occupies few of his hours. He is not financially secure. He is not covered by life, health and disability insurance. He has not a decent pension and his housing is a great embarrassment.

His training has not fitted him to master the enormous social worker chores that are thrust on him. The complexities of his job would tax superman. He is supposed to be familiar with and help enforce the laws in the constitution of Kenya as well as decrees from the President and inspired ministers. His career becomes a long march of frustration. He is expected to embody the compassionate qualities of priest, nurse, doctor, father and friend- but he is also supposed to galvanize himself into an instant commander, disciplinarian, marksman and military general. He may be pardoned if he fails. This is the Kenyan police officer- who patrols the streets at a time when lawlessness, riots and political strife have combined to produce an episode of social disorder unmatched in the country's history. The police of Kenya are in a state of crisis. Reports signal low morale.

The force is in the technological dark ages, trailing far behind acceptable standards. The crusade for police professionalism collides with entrenched policies, corruption and the inactivity of administrators encrusted with outworn traditions. Crime rates rise, crime solutions recede. Police explode with indiscriminate and excessive force.  

Directives, orders and advice, much of them conflicting and confusing descend on the force. "All rallies have been banned"..."Restrain yourselves"..."Do not use live ammunition"..."Be firm"..."Clean out and isolate Uhuru Park and Kenyatta Avenue"... .

A key factor in crisis is that the police in Kenya wear the face, prejudice and culture of the ruling class at a time when there are plenty of queries about the ruling class. The slums are spewing with raging violence and tension. The police today resemble toy soldiers who have been buffeted by a hurricane.

The nation is being hammered by immense social changes, the most pronounced of which are: the growing youthfulness of the population, the massing of more people in the slums, the expanded use of drugs, the dissolution of family and religious disciplines, and swiftly increasing personal mobility. Society itself has not decided how to grapple with these baffling, rapid changes. The police officer, a sentinel without an army, stands alone on the street, equipped with
old attitudes, weapons and training, charged with maintaining the kind of order that his employers are not even sure they want. The result is a mood of bitter, often sullen, frustration  among police officers.

As the old attitudes clash with vast new social forces, the shock unnerves many a police officer. Since the time of the pyramids, the police have been the protectors and agents of those in power. This is a truism of all societies. Police in this country have traditionally reacted to social and economic status. The well off are more often than not recipients of courteous treatment from police officers while the poor usually receive harsh, even rough treatment from the same officers. Now, the police officer's world is changing with startling rapidity. More Kenyans are well aware of their rights. The poor, the slum tied demand to be treated like the residents of Runda or Karen. The "clout" is there. It manifests itself either through politicians, lobby groups or the various forms of protest. The police officer, skilled at discriminating in a manner society seemed to want or at least tolerate, suddenly finds himself without guideposts. He is puzzled, bewildered, frustrated. He thinks that the majority wants one thing, but its leaders seem to be saying another. The average police officer is faced with a dilemma. The public expects the moon of him, but will give him neither the authority nor the responsibility. Not knowing what it wants in a time of swiftly changing values, the public has insured itself against all risks by stripping the police officer of authority.





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No excuses please!
written by Peter Njenga , August 24, 2008
I bet you need no prior training in psychology to know that citizens do have their rights too.
That any person is innocent until proven otherwise. That using excessive force is wrong. That soliciting and accepting bribes is wrong.
Why do other people in other professions find it easy to abide by the rules and regulations that govern their respective fields.
Policemen too should carry out their duties within the confines of their code of conduct. No special training is needed to do this!
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Inspiration
written by anaplojetik , August 25, 2008
You have a brain and a half!! I love the Asante song!!! Go go go!!!!
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written by Matt Were , August 26, 2008
Peter, do you live in Kenya? It does not take a psychologist to realise what ails the Kenyan police.Ever been made to feel small by Kenyan cops because you speak English and they dont? Ever been forced out of a matatu like you were Fazul Abdulla yet the only offence is failure to wear a seat belt? The author is on the mark with this commentary. When will you realise that the Kenya Police still has that colonial mindset, whereby their brief was to put down the common man.They will only carry out their duties within the confines of their code of conduct when they have officers who actually understand what the code of conduct is all about.
People in other professions excel because they actually know, they understand what they are supposed to do. To the Kenyan police, everyone is a suspect until otherwise proven. Peter! Peter! Peter! Don't give us myopic arguments

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Last Updated ( Thursday, 21 August 2008 )
 
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