This archive report was first published on 14 October 2019.
As I write this from London, I am struck by the stark contrast between the policing culture here and the one back home in Kenya.
The 'Extinction Rebellion' demonstrators against climate change have taken over the city, but the police handle them with dignity and respect, even as they escort them to the police cells.
It's a sobering reminder of how far we have to go in Kenya, where the police are often heavy-handed and brutal in their treatment of citizens.
Just last week, I witnessed the police harassing and stopping Mombasa residents from peacefully demonstrating against the SGR.
It's a stark reminder that the spirit of the Constitution is not being adhered to, and that our officers are not being trained on their legal responsibilities.
Why are our officers so aggressive towards the public? And why are they out in force to stop people from exercising their right to protest?
The answer lies, perhaps, in the policing culture that has been left to fester for decades - that of brutality, extrajudicial killings and extortion.
It's time for us to take a hard look at our policing culture and make some serious changes.
Arming private guards is not the solution to this problem - it will only add fuel to the fire and give more people arms to join the fray of robbing and looting in the guise of fighting crime.
Instead, we need to focus on training our police officers to be more humane and just, and to treat citizens with dignity and respect.
It's time for us to tear up the current syllabus for the police and draw up one informed by the Constitution.
Police don't need a change in uniform, but a change in attitude towards law and order.
Secondly, firearms must be drawn from the hands of the police and private guards to minimise abuse of their use.
Not all police officers qualify to hold a gun - as demonstrated by runaway extrajudicial killings and, now, armed robbery by the police.
It's time we used common sense in policing matters.
