In a presentation to a parliamentary committee last week, Kenya’s Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i made revelations that exposed the flawed foundations of the Kenyan nation-state. The minister revealed that Deputy President William Ruto has 257 police officers guarding his official and private residencies, and his businesses. And as if such stupendous extravagance was not obscene enough, Matiang’i said there was no upper limit. In other words, such VIPs could continue to request more police officers to guard an ever increasing array of properties.
The UN recommends a national ratio of one policeman to 450 people. Kenya has a ratio of one policeman to 600 people. There are areas in Kenya where policemen are so overstretched , residents are exposed to daily acts of criminality. Some parts of the Rift Valley are under siege by bandits, as are areas in Samburu and Turkana. Parts of Mandera and Garissa counties continue to come under terrorist attacks.
