On Tuesday, 29th January, 2019, the then Inspector-General Joseph Boinnet banned Kenyans from wearing military-looking attires, arguing that criminals have also been wearing such attire that ends up confusing the public who are unable to distinguish who a genuine officer is.
Today, at the highest court in the land, activist Boniface Mwangi has defied that order.
Mwangi wore a military-like jacket and took a photo near the seat of the Chief Justice of Kenya David Maraga at the Supreme Court.
He followed it with a defiant message:
‘Combat si illegal, reasoning ya police ndio illegal. Nimepiga hii picha supreme court kwa kiti ya Maraga. Politicians na watoi wa wadosi wanaweza vaa camouflage lakini vijana waki buy na kuvaa combat mtumba mtaani wanashikwa. Hio ni dhuluma. Polisi wamefanya ma-vijana mtaani ATM’, he wrote on his social media pages.
In October 2017, a section of the so called Nairobi Business Community showed up for a press conference clad in military fatigue at the Uhuru Park.
The four members of the group appeared in complete American military fatigue including patrol cap, jackets, combat boots and dark shades.
They were part of the Nairobi Business Community who had gathered to petition the Inspector General of Police and the IEBC on the safety of elections.
The National Police Service Act under section 101 (1) states that, “A person other than a police officer who, without the written authority of the Inspector-General puts on or assumes, either in whole or in part, the uniform, name, designation or description of a police officer, or a uniform resembling or intended to resemble the uniform of a police officer is guilty.”
Section 279 of the KDF Act provides for “imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year” for offenders.
If one is found guilty they are subject to a 10 year imprisonment, a fine not exceeding Sh1 million or both.
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