In a blistering criticism of President William Ruto’s inability, fear or failure to rein in rogue police officers and Directorate of Criminal Investigations, bishops of Anglican Church of Kenya (ACK) in western Kenya say the president’s silence on incidents of extrajudicial killings, raw brutality and enforced disappearances has turned the disciplined forces into state-sanctioned militias rather than a professional enforcers of law and order.

The bishops expressed disappointment in what they described as the president’s failure to publicly denounce police brutality and to decisively act against perpetrators within the security apparatus.

The clergymen said the president’s silence amounted to complicity in brazen human rights violations.

In a joint statement issued in Kisumu on Friday, the bishops singled out the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), accusing it of operating like a state-sanctioned militia rather than a professional investigative agency.

Anglican Church of Kenya bishops called for the immediate disbandment of rogue police units implicated in a spate of enforced disappearances, harassment and extrajudicial killings across the country.

Addressing journalists at the ACK New Cathedral Church in Kisumu, Maseno South Diocese Bishop Charles Onginjo, flanked by other ACK bishops from the six counties in the region, demanded that President Ruto act decisively on police brutality to restore public confidence in the security sector.

“As bishops shepherding God’s flock in this region, we can no longer remain silent as Kenyans continue to vanish without trace or are brutalised by the very officers mandated to protect them. The DCI, as currently constituted, has lost legitimacy and must be disbanded,” Bishop Onginjo said.

 “Mr President, you are the symbol of national unity. But your silence, in the face of growing police violence against innocent Kenyans, is deeply worrying. We urge you to use your constitutional mandate to bring sanity to our security forces,” the clerics said.

According to the clergy, the conduct of certain units in the police service, including the DCI, mirrors that of outlawed criminal gangs.

“It is chilling that taxpayers’ money is being used to bankroll a unit that now instils fear rather than safety. When the people begin to see the police as enemy number one, then we are teetering on the brink of state failure,” Bishop Onginjo warned.

The bishops further decried what they termed a systematic erosion of civil liberties, fuelled by unchecked power among rogue officers. They noted that if left unresolved, the growing mistrust between the public and law enforcement agencies could spiral into cycles of violence, retaliation and lawlessness.

The statement follows rising public concern over a series of unresolved cases of enforced disappearances and suspicious killings blamed on shadowy police units with victims often linked to political dissent or activism.

The bishops used the occasion to call for a comprehensive audit of all security agencies, alongside transparent investigations into all reported cases of police killings and disappearances. They also advocated for the creation of an independent civilian-led oversight body with prosecutorial powers to hold errant officers accountable.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

“We stand with the families who have lost loved ones in the hands of rogue officers. Justice delayed is justice denied – but justice must nonetheless be pursued,” the bishops declared.

The press conference brought together bishops from Kisumu, Siaya, Homa Bay, Migori, Kisii and Nyamira counties.

The church leaders reiterated their commitment to peaceful advocacy and moral leadership in holding the state accountable to its citizens.

• A Tell Media / KNA report / By Chris Mahandara