Mumias police station risks closure over poor hygiene

BY VIOLET AUMA

Public health officials in Mumias have threatened to shut down Mumias police station due to what they have termed as an unhealthy environment unfit for human life.

According to Mumias Chief Public Health Officer, Antony Ngaira, the areas surrounding the cells where prisoners are locked up as well as the workplaces of junior officers in the police station are unsuitable for human health.

“There are traces of human waste in the cells. There is also a man-hole directing the human waste from the cells and spreading it to other parts of the police station. The offices used by the junior officers are also in a bad state as the floors are mostly muddy and are capable of rearing disease-causing insects,” said Ngaira.

Mr. Ngaira was speaking after a submitting a 60-day notice of closure to the Mumias police station OCS.

“The environment around those offices can also lead to airborne diseases and respiratory infections. The lavatories are full, and the stench around the police station is harmful even to visitors. We are hereby giving them a two-month notice to rectify all these, failure to which my office will shut down this station without any other notice,” he concluded.

Mr. Ngaira further added that his department had served the police station with the first notice on 25 September, 2017 but their recommendations were yet to be acted on.