Kioni: 'Why is DIG Lagat still in office?'

Jubilee Party Secretary General Jeremiah Kioni has called for immediate interdiction of DIG Eliud Lagat and all police officers involved in the death of Albert Ojwang and other Kenyans killed during the Gen Z protest in Kenya.

Speaking during an interview with the Spice FM Situation Room on Friday 13, Kioni said that those  responsible for the brutal murder must face justice, further warning that impunity within Kenya’s security apparatus was pushing the country towards a dangerous authoritarianism.

“The people who were involved in what happened to Albert must be held accountable,” said Kioni.

“Everyone involved in that process should be interdicted. The OCS of Central Police Station was interdicted. Why the double standards? Why is Lagat still in office? There cannot be two standards when managing these institutions,”he added.

Jeremiah Kioni: The people who were involved in what happened to Albert must be held accountable. Everyone involved in that process should be interdicted. These officers were clearly covering up for Mr. Kanja who must have a detailed file. Even the NIS, and Mr. Lagat himself,… pic.twitter.com/WbmGhbZOBp — SpiceFM (@SpiceFMKE) June 13, 2025

Kioni also accused top security bosses for orchestrating a cover up expressing doubt over the government’s willingness to act, citing systemic failures and broken oversight system.

He insisted that every officer must be held personally accountable for their actions, regardless of their actions, ranks or assignment, stressing that leadership within the police service must reflect the will and mandate of the Kenyan people.

“When you behave that way, it’s because you have strayed from the mandate, we gave you as Kenyans. There is no justification, no whatsoever, for the abuse and murder of civilians under custody,” he emphasized.

Kioni also launched a scathing attack on the Independent Policing and Oversight Authority (IPOA), accusing the body of failing to live up to its constitutional mandate in addressing rising cases of brutality in the country.

He expressed deep concern over IPOA’s close working relationship with the very officers it is supposed to investigate, describing it as a betrayal of public trust and a key reason behind the continued killing of civilians, particularly the youth.

“A lot must be said about the failure of IPOA to keep up with the expectations of our constitution,” Kioni stated.

Adding, “They are supposed to independently oversee the police. But what we’ve seen in the last couple of days is IPOA members being flanked by police officers as they claim to investigate cases. In fact, we are receiving updates about what IPOA is doing from the same police officers they are supposed to be investigating.”

According to Kioni, IPOA’s dependency on the police compromises credibility and renders it incapable of delivering justice to victims of police abuse. He warned that as long as IPOA remains submissive to police influence the cycle of impunity and extrajudicial killings will persist.

“For as long as the IPOA continues behaving that way, we can expect more police officers to keep brutalizing and killing our young people, killing us, because there’s no fear- no sense of individual responsibility,” he stated. “People are not being held accountable for the atrocities they commit, and no one should be allowed to justify a killing in the name of the state.”

Kioni’s remarks come in the wake of national outrage over the death of Albert Ojwang 31-year-old teacher, who died in a police custody at Central Police station in Nairobi. On Thursday, IPOA chairperson Issack Hassan raised an alarm over the rise in deaths occurring in police custody.

Appearing before the National Assembly Committee on security to address the investigations into the death of Albert Ojwang, Hassan said that at least 20 people have died while held in the police custody in the past four months.