Malala in the eye of the storm for saying police officers need not be educated
Kakamega senator Cleophas Malala (centre) who is gunning for governor's seat.
Kakamega Senator Cleophas Malala has apologised for the controversial comments he made against the members of the National Police Service at a political rally in Lumakanda Market, Lugari Constituency.
The vocal politician, who is vying to be Kakamega governor in the August 2022 polls, made the apology on his Twitter account.
He, however, claimed that his statement had been taken out of context.
“My attention has been drawn to a video circulating on social media on my utterance on the police, I wish to categorically state that the remarks were taken out of context their importance to us cannot be underscored. It is in light of this that I wish to withdraw my remarks and apologise to our disciplined forces for the discomfort my remarks may have caused,” Malala stated.
The Senator had said police officers should be “school dropouts, who need not be educated”. He had also claimed that their work "is just to carry guns”.
He added that all learners who excel in high school should be taken to universities with the service being fed with dropouts.
His comments were castigated by the NPS in a press statement issued on Wednesday night.
“We as the NPS fraternity, including our dear families and friends, are utterly disappointed with such unwarranted and outrageous remarks, which we find too demeaning and only aimed at scandalizing a noble profession deployed in the service of the good people,” NPS said in the statement.
“That, more disappointed we are as police, given that these unfortunate remarks were made by a leader we not only hold in high esteem but one we also continue to provide round-the-clock protection with pride and competency. Policing of communities is dependent on knowledge, and guns are only complementary tools to achieve efficiency of service, not otherwise.”
