INSPECTOR General of Police (IGP) Camilius Wambura has rejected accusations that police officers have been carrying out abductions of people, asserting that such allegations are “unfair as the institution is mandated with protecting citizens and their properties.”

Speaking to journalists after laying a foundation stone for the construction of district police offices in Bariadi town, he said that the police are at the forefront in rescuing those who are being abducted.

He pointed at recent incidents where certain police commanders expressed the feeling that in recent incidents “some people abducted themselves and then blame the police.”

He said police commanders have been tasked with intensifying security for the people and their properties, insisting that it is unfair to link the police with the recent incidents.

“This has been explained by regional police commanders in their respective areas,” he reminded the journalists, wondering why it is still being circulated. “We are not into that business,” the IGP declared.

The police will ensure that the coming local government elections are conducted peacefully and with all the attention that the exercise demands, he said, underlining that the public should expect the exercise to be conducted peacefully before, during and in its aftermath.

The IGP was reacting to reports of people being abducted in unclear circumstances, including opposition activists, with the blame being directed at the police.

Ediga Mwakalebela, an activist famously known as Sativa, was reportedly abducted in Dar es Salaam and later found in Katavi Region, with families saying in social media highlights that their family member was being moved from one police station to another.

Kidnapping and disappearance cases have surged recently, with the security apparatus widely suspected to be involved, with a notable case being Kombo Twaha, a Chadema official taken from his home in Handeni on June 15 by individuals identifying themselves as security officials.

There is also the case of trader Lilenga Lilenga who disappeared on May 11 under similar circumstances, with social media users stridently exposed to cases of their loved ones going missing under kindred circumstances.