The Inspector General of Police Japhet Koome has been requested by the Morticians and Allied Professionals Association of Kenya (MAPAKe) to supply the names of the people and locations allegedly responsible for hiring dead bodies during the anti-government protests.
On Tuesday, 8 August, Koome made the allegations, claiming that opposition party members had conspired with morgue staff to hire dead bodies before later claiming that police had killed them.
In a statement released on Friday, 11 August, MAPAKe Chairperson Elkana Mwinami denounced Koome’s remarks, claiming they were damaging the institution’s well-deserved reputation.
“We demand the Inspector General to furnish both Kenya Health Professions Oversight Authority and Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentist Board the particulars of those implicated for investigation and if found culpable, necessary disciplinary actions taken against them,” said Mwinami.
“He has all the machinery to know who perpetuated such a hideous act. All he has to do is to name the person and the facility so that investigations can be done,” he added.
Mwinami claims that if Koome does not provide the names, they will also demand that he retract his criticism of the organization and people who work in the field.
The morticians further stated that such blanket statements could usher in “darker times” when winning the public’s trust was a concern, something they had fought tirelessly to bury.
“We condemn the statement because we believe that no mortuary technician in Kenya today can even attempt to do such a thing. The office of the Inspector General is such a respected office to even attempt to lower it to such unimaginable actions.”
Koome made the remarks in a bid to address the police brutality reported during the nationwide anti-government protests.
During the demonstrations, some protestors caught up in the chaos nursed bullet wounds while others succumbed to gunshot wounds as police introduced live bullets in addition to the use of teargas.
