Omanyo demands strict checks on Ksh2B police brutality compensation fund, condemns killings
By Mary Goretty, June 14, 2026Busia County Woman Representative Catherine Omanyo has called for a stringent audit and verification process of the newly allocated Ksh2 billion state compensation fund meant for victims of police brutality, warning that the system risks being infiltrated by fraudsters.
Speaking on Sunday, June 14, 2026, Omanyo raised concern that individuals who were not affected by protests or police violence are already finding their way into compensation lists, potentially denying genuine victims and bereaved families their rightful payouts.
“Compensation is there; recently, in the budget, they have put two billion,” Omanyo said. “And that is not the president’s money. It is a lot of money, but we will make sure that thieves don’t come to benefit again.”
The lawmaker expressed outrage over reports that unvetted individuals are being slotted into compensation rolls ahead of actual victims.
”You will find a person who doesn’t even know the smell of tear gas, has never been shot by a bullet, whose child has never died, but they are on the list,” she decried.
Verification process
Omanyo called upon the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) to take charge of the verification process. She urged the rights body to rigorously vet the lists and ensure that strictly no opportunistic names are inserted.
The issue strikes a particularly painful chord for Omanyo, who noted that her home county has borne a disproportionate brunt of the casualties.
”Busia is topping the list,” she said. “How do I feel when I read a name and against it, it’s Busia County?”
The legislator issued a direct challenge to President William Ruto and Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen, demanding an immediate end to lethal police force against citizens.
”We do not want to witness any other life going down through police brutality,” Omanyo stated. “The police of this nation, your work is to protect, not to kill us!”
“Papa had surrendered, Papa was running away, they shot Papa on the back,” she said.
Omanyo insisted that accountability and transparency in both compensation and policing remain key to restoring public trust.