Inspector-General of Police Hilary Mutyambai has stated that approximately 2,000 police officers are mentally unfit to serve in the police force, adding to mounting concerns over the rise in police suicides and depression.
The IG yesterday told the Anglican bishops and senior clergy in Westlands, Nairobi, that the instances were uncovered after a thorough medical assessment of all police officers across the country.
“We have subjected all the officers (to medical examination), and to our surprise, we got a big number (of mentally-disturbed police officers). We isolated almost 2,000 police officers who are unfit to do their law enforcement work,” he stated.
He noted that the officers would undergo counseling sessions before they resume official duties.
“The Police Service has now started the process of managing some of them.
To remove someone from work (because of medical grounds) is not easy. The government has its processes.”
The IG further stated that the investigations revealed a pattern of some police officers absconding from duty by claiming illness.
“Our tool of work is the gun, and when one bullet is discharged, the implications are serious,” he noted.
Among the factors that Mutyambai attributed to the rising cases include corruption during recruitment as well as a lack of social support system.
This comes only days after Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i addressed mounting concerns about mental health in the police force, stating that the government would devote more resources to combat the dangerous problem.
The CS, on the other hand, stated that Kenyans as a whole should not take it as an isolated incident, but rather address the problem as a whole.
Frank Njenga, the chairman of Chiromo Hospital Group, noted that frontline officers, for instance, those who respond first to distress calls are exposed to post-traumatic stress disorder.
The service has partnered with a team of doctors and the Chiromo Group to train officers on ways of dealing with mental challenges.
The IG said the high number is attributed to corruption during recruitment, lack of social support systems, work pressure, and alcoholism.
A recent survey showed that 90 percent of police officers experience challenges related to alcoholism.