Assessment of Cooperativeness Amongst Police Officers and Other Security Agencies in Dealing with Criminal Emergencies in Kakamega County, Kenya

Abstract

Inter and intra-agency cooperation among police officers and with other security agencies in dealing with crime is paramount for an effective emergency response operation and lacking it would mean that individual security agencies and agents run the misgiving of making security matters an individualized affair. Today, particularly in Kakamega County, the manner in which National Police Service responds to criminal emergencies attracts a lot of criticism, casting serious doubts on their preparedness to handle criminal emergencies. Security emergency response operations have erroneously been reduced to individual good will enterprise with very little collaborative approach. It is on this mishap that this study endeavored to investigate the cooperation of Police Officers amongst themselves and with other Security agencies in dealing with criminal emergencies in Kakamega County. M utual Aid theory and partnerships theory were employed in the study. It was a cross-sectional study with mixed methodology approach. The study sample was 168 respondents. Stratified random sampling technique and Purposive Sampling were used to determine the respondents. Interview schedules and questionnaires were used in data collection. Data for the study was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics with the aid of the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 27 for windows. Qualitative data was analyzed thematically through verbatim and quantitative data was analyzed using ANOVA linear regression model. Study findings established a statistically significant and positive relationship between cooperation among police officers and other security agencies for effective response to criminal emergencies in affected areas within the County. In light of the findings, the study recommended for a multi-agency coordinated approach that involves police officers and the public in the management of criminal emergencies. Key Words: Criminal Emergency Response, Police cooperation, National Police Service, Security Agencies. DOI: 10.7176/PPAR/12-6-08 Publication date: August 31 st 2022