NAIROBI, Kenya – ODM leader Raila Odinga has condemned the death of Albert Ojwang’, a teacher who died while in police custody at Nairobi’s Central Police Station, terming the incident a “brutal and senseless” abuse of power.
Ojwang’, who was reportedly arrested over an alleged offensive social media post about a senior police officer, was picked up from Homa Bay and transported to the capital. He later died in unclear circumstances while detained.
“So far, nobody knows who gave the orders for Mr. Ojwang’ to be arrested and ferried all the way to Nairobi, and yet that person should be answering to Kenyans,” said Odinga in a statement.
The ODM party leader said Ojwang’s death added to a growing list of cases involving young Kenyans who have died in police hands, warning that such patterns are deepening public mistrust in law enforcement.
“When citizens can no longer tell the difference between the two forms of injustice—police injustice and mob injustice—we are staring at the reality of failure as a nation,” Odinga said.
Statement on the Death of Albert Ojwang
He called for urgent and credible action by the National Police Service, stressing that accountability in such cases is not optional.
“A speedy and credible closure to this latest incident of injustice in the hands of the police, alongside the many others that we have been pursuing since 2023, is not optional,” he stated.
The Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) has launched investigations into Ojwang’s death, and several officers who were on duty at Central Police Station during the incident have been interdicted pending inquiry outcomes.
Odinga urged the state to treat the case with the gravity it deserves, warning that failure to do so would only deepen the culture of impunity.
