NAIROBI, Kenya — Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) leader Raila Odinga has issued a strong condemnation following the death of Albert Ojwang’, a trained teacher, who died in police custody at the Central Police Station.
Mr Ojwang’s arrest stemmed from an alleged offensive social media post targeting a senior police officer.
Mr Ojwang’ was apprehended in Homa Bay and subsequently transported to Nairobi, where he tragically died in police cells. Mr Odinga expressed profound concern over the circumstances, stating, “So far, nobody knows who gave the orders for Mr. Ojwang’ to be arrested and ferried all the way to Nairobi, and yet that person should be answering to Kenyans.”
The ODM leader highlighted his concern that Mr Ojwang’s death is not an isolated incident but rather part of a distressing and extensive list of “young and defenseless Kenyans whose lives have been taken too soon, in brutal and senseless circumstances, at the hands of the police.”
Mr Odinga warned that such occurrences are severely eroding public trust in law enforcement and the state itself, cautioning that these actions represent a significant stride towards societal chaos and ultimate collapse.
“When citizens can no longer tell the difference between the two forms of injustice – police injustice and mob injustice – we are staring at the reality of failure as a nation,” Mr Odinga observed gravely.
The former Prime Minister called for immediate and decisive action from the National Police Service, emphasizing that accountability is not a matter of choice.
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He demanded that the police force takes full responsibility for holding its officers to account, beginning with a thorough investigation into Ojwang’s death.
“A speedy and credible closure to this latest incident of injustice in the hands of the police, alongside the many others that we have been pursuing since 2023, is not optional,” Odinga declared.
In response to the growing outcry, the Independent Police Oversight Authority (IPOA) has initiated its own investigations into Ojwang’s death while in police custody.
Additionally, officers who were on duty at Central Police Station during the incident have been interdicted pending further inquiry.
