Acting IG Masengeli meets central region police bosses over illicit alcohol
By Arnold Ngure, August 30, 2024Acting Inspector General of Police Gilbert Masengeli on Friday, August 30, 2024, met police bosses from the wider central Kenya region over the war against illicit brew.
In a statement, Masengeli commended the cops for their efforts in the fight against alcoholism in the region, urging them to embrace coordination with other government agencies for more success.
“Masengeli commended the Officers for their fight against illicit brew in the region and urged them to maintain the multi-agency teamwork with National Government Administrative Offices (NGAO),” the statement read in part.
In the meeting that featured the Central region police commander Lydia Ligami and top police bosses in Nairobi including the deputy inspector general of the Kenya Police Eliud Lagat Kiganjo police commandant Nyale Munga and the National police spokesperson Resila Onyango, it was determined that the regional officers would be empowered to continue with the war on illicit alcohol.
Lagat promised to improve the state of the region’s police stations, which he noted were the contact centres where operational focus should land.
Gachagua’s war on alcoholism
Earlier this year, Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua declared a total war on alcoholism in the region which resulted in a stern warning given to police officers who were seen to be abetting the illicit trade.
This came after 17 people in Kirinyaga died mysteriously after consuming an illicit brew.
In the funerals attended by Gachagua, the deputy president warned that police officers implicated in such crimes would be dismissed from the service.
“You either work as a police officer or run a bar. You cannot protect the law which you also flout. That is clearly a conflict of interest,” Gachagua said during a funeral in Kirinyaga.
The war on illicit brew would extend to Gachagua’s Mathira constituency backyard where bars have remained closed for months, with traders lamenting the loss of their businesses.
Additionally, the Nyeri County government would enact a law that significantly reduces the bar operation hours from 2: 00 pm to 11: 00 pm. The law also requires businesses involved in the sale of wines and spirits to open for only seven hours from 5: 00 pm to 11: 00 pm.
During the adoption of the law, Nyeri governor Mutahi Kahiga also directed county government officials who own bars and wine and spirits businesses to either close them down or get sacked.