By Eddah Waithaka
The GEMA Watho Association is demanding immediate police accountability and threatening private prosecution after officers reportedly raided a church service in Othaya.
The national platform, comprising advocates from the Gikuyu, Embu, Meru, and Kamba communities, issued a blistering statement condemning the incident at Witima ACK Church.
Chairman Wambugu Wanjohi described the scene, where police allegedly used tear gas, live bullets, and force against unarmed civilians, as an unacceptable crossing of a constitutional line.
“The role of the police is to protect, not to terrorize. They exist to preserve peace, not to manufacture chaos,” the statement read.
It accused the administration of supervising every aspect of life while ignoring constitutional provisions, asking, “When even a church service is not spared from violence and intimidation, then we must ask what space remains truly sacred and protected in this country.”
The Association called for the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) to launch a prompt, public investigation. It warned that accountability must extend from officers on the ground to those who authorized the operation.
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“Should IPOA fail to act with the urgency and seriousness this matter demands, we shall commence private prosecutions as provided for under the law,” the group declared, asserting that citizens would not let accountability become “hostage to institutional delay.”
The statement directly challenged Cabinet Secretary for Interior Kipchumba Murkomen and Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja, stating their silence would signal approval.
It invoked the legacy of the Waki Report, cautioning that ignoring its lessons on state-sanctioned violence risks a systemic collapse of the rule of law.
GEMA Watho Association urged the public to document violations and speak out, pledging legal defense to those affected.“A church must remain a sanctuary. The Constitution must remain our shield. And justice must remain non-negotiable,” the statement concluded.
