At a thanksgiving prayer for the uniformed service in eastern Kenya on Sunday, the Catholic Diocese of Embu, through Bishop Paul Kariuki, offered counselling services to police officers in a bid to curb the increasing cases of murder and suicide among the law enforcers.
National Police Service statistics show 65 murder cases and 57 suicide cases were recorded within the service in 2016-2020. To respond to the worryingly escalating trend, the church will, through seminars and workshops, create a conducive environment for police officers to share their grievances, have them mitigated in time and get spiritual guidance.
In their line of work, police officers are usually on the receiving end of all societal evils as they maintain law and order even in difficult situations like murder, rape and terrorism. Undeniably, they get exposed to trauma, which eventually deteriorates their mental wellness and affects service delivery.
Challenging work assignments
Mental ill-health can affect the officers’ ability to cope with their challenging work assignments, which may lead to burnout, frustrations, depression and hostility towards the public and, ultimately, suicidal behaviour.
In severe cases, the victim may attack their colleagues or even family members and turn the gun on themselves. Sadly, such incidences only spark discussions in the mainstream media and social media until the victim is interred and fizzle out—until the next case. If more stakeholders emulated the church, then the battle would be won.
Outreach programmes
Notably, the National Police Service Commission (NPSC) is significantly addressing the officers’ mental and psychological issues. It established a counselling unit in 2021 to evaluate, design and spearhead outreach programmes to prevent mental ill-health and substance abuse among law enforcers.
The church’s move will complement government efforts to curb the vice since it brings a religious perspective into dealing with the issue. But a joint approach by multiple stakeholders would help to tackle the matter in a more diverse yet strategic manner.
