More than 90 per cent of police officers do not like their new uniforms introduced by the Government. According to them, they are plain and ugly, the Parliamentary Committee on Administration and National Security has revealed.
The committee which is on a countrywide fact-finding mission on police stations said police officers prefer the old uniform to the new ones.
Parliamentary Committee on Administration and National Security chairman Paul Koinange said most officers interviewed in 20 counties said the new uniform looked like that of Kenya Power staff and that the quality and colour was wanting.
Speaking after touring the Malindi Police Station, he said there was need to dig deeper and establish why the police officers hate the new uniform.
“The police feel like the old uniform is better and more than 90 per cent are opposed to the new uniform. As a committee, we have to get a common ground so that we do not appear to be pushing them to wear the new uniform,” he said.
As a committee, he said their job is to help the police get what they need so that they are able to serve the people properly and with confidence.
He also touched on importance of looking into police welfare, infrastructure and promotion.
Koinange also cited need to look into police harassment reports linked to curfew which was brought to the House in form of questions and statements.
“Our police need to get frequent trainings on new laws and a proper budget and we are working on how we shall enact legislation that is geared towards improving service delivery,” he said adding that poor infrastructure coupled with poor working environment also hindered effective service delivery.
He stressed on the need to address the psychological well-being of police officers to ensure they act professionally and with decorum.
He cited cases of police officers being involved in crimes such as murders and robbery was as a result of a lack of psycho-social support.
Koinange said psychological centres must be established within police stations to offer counseling to officers.
“We need to find a way to give officers proper equipment to enable them perform their duties well,” Koinange said.
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