In an interview on Monday, Kenyan police officer Godfrey Otunge shared the progress and strategy of the ongoing peacekeeping mission in Haiti.
Otunge, the head of the police mission in Haiti, is among the first officers deployed as Kenya prepares to send additional personnel.
He revealed that the officers in Haiti are committed to restoring peace by collaborating closely with Haitian authorities.
"We have a job that we are committed to do. We intend to achieve this by working closely with Haitian authorities and local and international partners dedicated to a new Haiti," Otunge remarked.
He emphasized that failure is not an option in dealing with the gangs that have taken over much of the country.
In the interview, Otunge explained that the last 15 days had been a period of evaluation and planning on how to neutralize the gangs. However, he declined to reveal further details on the mission or the strategies for security and strategic reasons.
"The job is to ensure the restoration of peace throughout Haiti. We must do this job to the best of our ability," he emphasized.
Otunge's remarks came after officers announced that they had taken control of the largest hospital, the Hospital of the State University of Haiti, also known as the General Hospital, which was previously controlled by gangs.
The new head of the Haiti National Police, Rameau Normil, revealed on Monday that police seized the hospital on Sunday night as efforts to restore more health facilities continue.
This move will grant access to patients who were forced to cut their treatments short after gangs torched, vandalized, and destroyed multiple health facilities in Port-au-Prince.
Normil also mentioned reinforcing several police substations after two officers were attacked and killed, as part of the plan to secure these areas and arrest the gangs.
"One day people are going to wake up and see that the bandits have been stopped by the police," Normil reassured.
Since the deployment in June, Kenyan police officers have been spotted patrolling the streets of Port-au-Prince, maintaining order in the areas.