Kimilili Member of Parliament (MP) Didmus Barasa has termed the stepping aside of Deputy Inspector General of Police Eliud Lagat as an unfortunate development.

The legislator made the remarks during a presser on Wednesday, June 18, 2025, at the parliament buildings, two days after Lagat bowed to pressure and stepped aside from his role following the death of slain teacher Albert Ojwang.

Despite Lagat’s move being viewed as the right step towards the process of establishing an independent inquiry into the circumstances leading to the death, Barasa maintains that his stepping aside was uncalled for.

“I regret the resignation of the Deputy Inspector General Lagat. It was uncalled for. There is no relationship between a DIG and a police station. He is a very senior person,” he opined.

According to Barasa, Lagat conducted himself as a law-abiding citizen by following the rule of law as regards Ojwang’s case by lodging a formal complaint with the police.

“If there is a gentleman deserving a present, it’s him. If I were him, I would not have made a complaint. I would look for where the suspect is, and bring him where I want him to. But he was a gentleman and followed the rule of law. Despite being in charge of the police, he did not take the law into his own hands as an aggrieved person. How is that a mistake to step down? Was he the sentry officer? Was he also performing the function of the OCS within Nairobi? So it was uncalled for,” the MP asserted.

He also faulted the arrest and subsequent arraignment of the Central Police Station Officer Commanding Station (OCS) Samson Talam.

“It was unfair for OCS Talam to be arrested. There was a sentry officer responsible at the time when Ojwang arrived. The person on duty should be the one to answer questions about what happened to Ojwang. According to me, the OCS was the person who should have started the internal disciplinary mechanism to discipline the person who was manning the cell,” he stated.

Speaking at the same function, Barasa also shielded the police from the criticism directed at them while apportioning blame to the public.

“Today, the most worried people are police officers. They have a constitutional duty to protect lives, but in the line of doing their work, many of them have lost their jobs, been jailed, and are facing myriad criminal cases and prosecution,” he stated.

“We need to reflect as a country; we need to look beyond what is happening. We can’t condemn the police on the basis of isolated cases. There is no officer who can pick up a gun and shoot a person; it’s not possible,” he said.

The MP further castigated the conduct of Kenyans while interacting with police, citing cases of physical assault against the police.

“You have seen a video where a young lady protester from my home county in Bungoma is harassing a young lady who is carrying a gun to the point she attempted to slap a police officer, and the officer cannot do anything. This must change,” he added.