What Next After the Hashtags and Demos, We Must Appease the Spirits Of The Murdered

Protestors in Nairobi, chanting anti judicial killings slogans following murder of lawyer Willie Kimani

Lawyer Willie Kimani together with his client Josephat Mwedwa and their taxi driver Joseph Muiruri were laid to rest eventually on Saturday. Hundreds of mourners gathered to give the three heroic send off in their rural homes.

Leaders from different divisions; LSK, political, administration and civil society all had one common message, bring to an end extra judicial killings which claimed the lives of the three. The brutal murder of Willie and his company not only grabbed headlines of local media outlets but international spaces.

From Civil unions to international media terminals, the gory news caught the world in consternation even as US extrajudicial killings maimed the world. In a peculiarity mannerism, Kenyans have a tendency of forgetting things as soon as they relegate from the trending topics list.

Great scholars say insanity is the art of doing the same thing over and over and expecting to see a change. The cycle has been entirely predictable, extrajudicial executions by police are committed, in this case, a prominent case as the rest get shoved off, a public outrage sparked, the topic trends on all the key social and mainstream media platforms.

Anti Extra Judicial killings Protestors in Nairobi streets. (Photo: Getty)

Leaders drawn from across the board come out to reprobate the heinous acts, victims of brutality buried, and the hype goes with it as well. Life gets back to normal as soon as the graves are covered.

Loudmouthed MP, Moses Kuria knowing the distinctiveness of Kenyans, is on account calling for the assassination of CORD leader Raila. He went further to say, Raila’s supporters would riot for few weeks, the police would shoot dead a good number in the name of maintaining peace and before we know it, life would be back to normal.

Kuria wasn’t wrong, Kenyans have a slight recollection, we have knee-jerk reactions and forget at light speed. Now that Willie has been buried, and the calls for the stop to extrajudicial killings rented the air, where do we go next. From my point of view, we have at disposal several arbitrations to curb this menace that has steadily been robbing the country the best of its brains.

Western Financiers

The police force largely depends on foreign aid in financing their operations, US, UK, Sweden, France just to mention a few are some of the key financiers of the now killer branded force. The foreign powers gratify themselves in training, equipping and financing the force at large.

Unless the extra-judicial killings are part of their maiming agenda, the financing countries must use their powers at stake to push for the alignment of the police. Use veto powers to quash the lethal force to submission. I leave it at a comfortable point that UK, US, France and the rest have the rest to cut off, review or continue facilitating a clearly brutalising force. Their stand will and won’t be overlooked given the stakes they hold.

Police reforms

The new constitution came with the Independence Police Oversight Authority with the sole focus on streamlining the force and furnishing its face. However, the fruits are yet to materialise. Civil societies, political and interested party leaders must bury their faces in this course to ensure the transformation of the police from its perceived image to an acceptable one. Ethics, adherence to core values and respect for natural laws should be guiding lines in this agenda.

Lawyers carry the casket bearing the body of slain colleague Willie Kimani during his funeral service

A reformed police force, streamlined with discipline will go a long way in dealing with extrajudicial killings. According to reports, a reward of as little as Sh.2,000 an equivalent of $20 is given to officers who kill criminals. The unpropitious aspect here is, you’re either a perceived or real criminal. A disciplined, well-paid officer, will pause for a moment before pulling the trigger for a mere Sh.2,000.

Unfortunately, in Kenya, you stand a higher chance of raising your rank in the force given the number of criminals real or perceived that you’ve fallen. This lethal loophole is a motivational factor for rogue officers to pull the trigger continuously with the final thought of rising the tube.

Reforms should extend to the dismissal of all top security organs from Inspector General of the police, CID director all the way down in cleansing the police force. Boinnet, Muhoro and company, who have been overseeing the recent infinite illegal killings.

Disbanding the Killer unit

Brand Fire lawyer, Abdulahi Ahmednassir, recently pricked the inflated balloon exposing a relatively obvious fact that DCI’s led unit harbours the killer unit.

Dreaded Serious crimes prevention unit, flying squad under the unsmiling DCI Ndegwa Muhoro should have deeper scrutiny. Most illegal killings have been attributed to these units. Lawyers, leaders and all relevant bodies must lock in their focus in this space to ensure the ‘promotion to glory’ elements are disbanded as a measure in killing the unit and eventually the extra-judicial killings. Failure to this, the noises will reign and so will the unit, insanity.

Executive stand

When the prominent businessman Jacob was earlier in the year assassinated in what many points at the executives’ wing involvement and most recently, Willie’s murder, one thing has been common, the deafening silence from the executive.

Their silence can easily be read as a stamping signal to the extra-judicial killings. President Uhuru and Jubilee government, swore an oath to protect, uphold the constitution of Kenya and above all ensure the safety of all citizens.

DCI Muhoro, Head of Flying Squad John Kariuki when they appeared before the court

Throughout the fatal incidences, their voices are hardly audible, silence throwing many into the speculative mode. The leaders must come out of their shells to condemn these killings and Kenyans to take them into action. As top most organs in the hierarchy, they must be responsible and pull the relevant strings in dealing with this menace, and silence will only be read as an endorsement.

Tribunal Inquiries

Every time, a prominent execution takes place a tribunal is formed with negative results to show at the end. Devotion must be shown, and past enquiries reports should be made public as research basis and historical files preservation.

A general Tribune to discuss the bigger problem, extra-judicial killings, let’s look into the causes and come up with perfect solutions out, name and shame the rogue elements in the state involved in this.

As Kenyans head to the next general elections, all danger pausing aspects must be dealt with, and not a single angle left hanging given possible repercussions.

To appease the spirits of our brothers and sisters in history from JM, Mboya, Ouko, Wagalla to the Mavoko three and everyone else, who’ve been brutally murdered by hit squads, we must not relent on justice course. It must not be business as usual and wait for the poachers to pounce on their next catch for us to wake from the repose.