Lawyer Willis Otieno has cautioned Kenyan police officers against carrying out Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen’s controversial “shoot-to-kill” directive. Otieno issued the warning via a strongly worded statement on his X account in the early hours of Friday, June 27.
Otieno challenged the legality of Murkomen’s directive, which instructs officers to shoot anyone approaching a police station with allegedly malicious intent. He wrote:
“Dear Police Officers, If you choose to follow illegal orders from @kipmurkomen or any politician drunk on power, know this: you will stand alone in the dock. When the dust settles , and it always does the cameras will have your face, not his.”
He emphasized that any officer who obeys these instructions risks legal consequences. Furthermore, Otieno cautioned that politicians promising immunity will soon abandon them. “The same people using you today will abandon you tomorrow. No uniform protects you from accountability. No title will shield you from justice. The long arm of the law may be slow, but it never forgets. Choose the Constitution, not chaos.”
Otieno’s remarks come hours after CS Murkomen inspected police stations in Kiambu County and urged officers to defend their stations at all costs. Murkomen explained that the directive came in response to repeated attacks and mockery by trespassers. He said;
“Ile shida inafanya saa zingine polisi wapige wakora risasi ni kwa sababu… wanarudi kuchekelea polisi… mtu yeyote ambaye atakaribia police station, piga yeye risasi.”
Murkomen defended his stance, insisting that firearms are tools for defense, not ornaments. He noted that some individuals arrested during protests later returned to instigate unrest. “You should only run when you see that with whatever you have, even if you were to kill five or six, there are still many left,” he said during the visit.
Opposition has been swift and pointed. Alongside Otieno, former KICC Board chairman Irungu Nyakera also condemned the orders, calling them “reckless, dangerous,” and labelling the instruction as an incitement to extrajudicial killings. He cautioned officers that the “blood you spill” will not be forgotten and warned that the International Criminal Court would hold them accountable.
Observers noted that Otieno’s warning highlights a growing divide between the executive’s heavy-handed rhetoric and constitutional protections of citizens. On one hand, Murkomen frames the directive as a necessary deterrent. On the other, legal experts argue it violates human rights and undermines due process.
Civil society leaders have also joined the conversation. A national NGO official, speaking on condition of anonymity, emphasized that crowd control measures must respect constitutional limits. They echoed Otieno’s call for police to deploy proportionate and lawful responses.
