Willis Otieno demands personal liability for DCI officers over unlawful arrests
By Emmanuel Rono, July 3, 2026Safina Party deputy leader Willis Otieno has called for an end to the misuse of the criminal justice system through fabricated charges and unlawful arrests, urging that rogue investigators be held personally accountable for constitutional violations.
In a statement on his X account on Friday, July 3, 2026, Otieno said the era of the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) using trumped-up charges to undermine due process must come to an end.
“The era of the DCI abducting due process through trumped-up charges must end,” he said.
Personal and financial responsibility
Otieno argued that investigators who fabricate evidence, engineer baseless arrests, procure illegal detention, or weaponise the criminal justice system to settle personal or political scores should bear personal and financial responsibility for their actions.
According to Otieno, officers found culpable should compensate victims from their own pockets instead of leaving taxpayers to shoulder the burden of damages awarded by courts.
“Every investigator who fabricates evidence, engineers baseless arrests, procures illegal detention, or weaponises the criminal justice system to settle scores or please political masters should be held personally and financially liable for every constitutional violation they commit,” he said.
The constitutional lawyer cited a ruling by the Court of Appeal, saying it had established that rogue public officers should not hide behind the State to escape accountability.
Disciplinary proceedings
According to Otieno, officers who abuse their authority should also face disciplinary proceedings and answer for unlawful arrests, malicious prosecutions, and illegal detentions.
“The Court of Appeal has already pointed the way: rogue public officers cannot hide behind the State while taxpayers foot the bill for their misconduct,” he said.
He insisted that law enforcement powers must be exercised within the Constitution and warned against the misuse of investigative authority.
“A badge is not a licence to persecute innocent Kenyans,” Otieno said.