Kidero suspends county askaris caught on camera brutalizing hawkers
Nairobi County Government has suspended five city askaris after they were exposed in an investigative TV series.
According to a statement sent to newsrooms on Tuesday evening, Nairobi governor Dr Evans Kidero suspended the five after they were exposed on KTN’s Jicho Pevu for criminal acts including extortion, brutally and murder.
The 25-minute film particularly highlights the injustice that hawkers on the streets of Nairobi are often subjected to by the rogue officers.
The film shows different scenes where city askaris are seen swooping on hawkers, brutalizing them and confiscating their wares.
Following the airing of the film, now governor Kidero has vowed to take action any officers implicated in such acts.
CITY HAWKER’S KILLING
“I would like to assure Nairobi residents that I will not sit back and allow a few rotten individuals to take us back to the old council habits,” Kidero said in the statement.
The suspended officers were named as Angeline Kamani aka Kamatha, Bernard Muli aka Gathauthau, Ambani Akasi, who is in custody as well as Julius Ochieng and Alfred Muranya.
This come just a week after the High Court granted bond to four city askaris accused of killing a city hawker last year in Nairobi.
The four, Mr Alfred Ongesi alias Brown, Mr Julius Ochieng, Mr Ambani Akasi alias Ogesi and Mr Marigo Protus, alias Sarara, were charged with killing Mr Irungu Kamau, a hawker, on September 16, 2015 at Nyam Hotel along Duruma Road Nairobi.
The four, who appeared before Justice James Wakiaga, were released on a Sh2 million bond with similar surety and an alternative bail of Sh500,000 each.