Residents of Gesima ward in Kitutu Masaba Constituency have urged the government to consider investigating the conduct of some police officers attached at Gesima police post for alleged participation in criminal activities.
Led by area MCA Ken Atuti on Tuesday at Gesima market, they pleaded with the Ministry of Interior and Coordination to launch investigations to allegations terming the officers as ‘masterminds’ of criminal activities in the region.
They threatened to launch an assault against the officers if the government failed to respond to the request besides calling for compensation for a number of businesspeople who have allegedly lost millions of shillings to armed robbers.
“Security of the citizen is paramount. Those mandated to safeguard us cannot turn all over against us and we demand that the ministry investigates and takes action against a number of officers from Gesima police post,” Atuti said.
According to them, the officers had failed to secure the region with a number of them reportedly dismissing residents whenever they report a theft case at the police post.
“Any security personnel must work with residents. Turning away residents who report criminal cases means that they are hiding something. Time has come for an action to be taken against them if at all the government is serious about restoring security,” he said.
Sergeant Mohammed Hassan from the police post exonerated his officers and accused residents of falsehood.
“Yes, we have been handling a number of theft related cases but I don’t think the police have anything to do with it. The officers have managed to arrest at least 10 people in connection with robbery in the month of August alone therefore their arguments are insincere,” he said.